“OG Azuki holders” raised questions about the legitimacy of AzukiDAO.
A decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) created by a "dedicated group of Azuki enthusiasts," known as AzukiDAO, has put forth a proposal to recover 20,000 Ether (ETH) from Azuki's founder, "Zagabond," also known as Alex Xu.
The move comes on the heels of numerous controversial developments linked to the prominent non-fungible token (NFT) brand Azuki.
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The Azuki team has faced mounting criticism from Azuki NFT holders and the larger NFT community, particularly following the controversial launch of the Azuki Elementals collection on June 27th.
The project was first teased at an Azuki-themed event in Las Vegas on June 23rd. A fraction of the 20,000 NFTs were airdropped to select Azuki holders, while the remaining NFTs were made available for purchase on June 27th.
The controversy stems from the fact that the sale never saw the light of day as a public offering. The entire collection was bought out in private sales within 15 minutes.
The launch netted the Azuki team $38 million but also sparked a wave of criticism. Accusations ranged from the limited presale window and website issues to the lack of originality in the new NFTs' artwork.
Additionally, NFT holders voiced worries that the release of 20,000 new NFTs could depreciate the value of existing NFTs in the collection. The controversy reached its climax when the project team allegedly moved 20,000 ETH from the wallet shortly after the NFTs were minted.
Therefore, on July 2nd, AzukiDAO called for the appointment of legal counsel to take action against Xu, who stands accused of "rugging" multiple projects. On top of that, it also aims to divert any recovered funds back into the DAO to stimulate the growth of the broader Azuki community.
The proposal centered around recovering $39 million worth of ETH, proceeds from the controversial launch of Azuki’s "Elementals" NFT collection.
Currently, the proposal appears to have substantial backing. Currently, 88.35% of AzukiDAO (BEAN) tokens have been employed to support the proposal, with a smaller 11.65% in opposition. The voting is slated to end at 6:38 am UTC on July 3rd.
Yet the origins of AzukiDAO and its relationship to Azuki have been called into question. Some original Azuki holders, referred to as “OG Azuki holders,” have raised doubts about the DAO.
On a July 3rd Twitter thread, an anonymous commentator known as Tytan.ETH notified his followers that most Azuki holders were unfamiliar with AzukiDAO and questioned its legitimacy.
Indeed, Etherscan data shows that the contract for the BEAN token, which is being used for voting, was created merely two days ago. Furthermore, the corresponding Twitter account was only set up in June 2023, and its Discord channel currently hosts 116 members.
