State of the MSS
The MSS started operating in early September for a year-long term, and the first payment to the signers and chairs was made on October 2nd. The roster initially consisted of 3 chairs and nine signers.
Right now, the MSS is operating with two chairs after Alex Lumley stepped down and eight signers after Frisson was elected in the OAT. Both members are still on the roster in an emergency signer role but are not receiving compensation. The expected end of the term is at the end of August 2025.
Regarding budget, the payroll safe of the MSS right now has 131,209.21 ARB, which translates to roughly $51,000, with ARB’s price at $0.3890. That amount theoretically needs to cover the compensation of the MSS roster, and Regen’s expenses for the financial report they put together every month.
The expenses are as follows:
- 2 Chairs at $2,500/mo = $5,000
- 8 Signers at $1,500/mo = $12,000
- Regen’s Invoice at $6,650/mo for two more months = $6,650
for a total of $23,650/mo
With four months of the term yet to be paid and two months of Regen’s report, the budget to cover payroll is effectively short by ~$34,000 (assuming an ARB price of $0.3890), so the MSS can only continue operations until the end of June.
Possible Ways Forward
The MSS, together with Entropy and the Arbitrum Foundation, have been exploring different paths forward for the MSS, given the shortfall mentioned above. Below you can find a summary of the discussed options:
- Budget top-up
A seemingly straightforward solution would be to request a balance top-up from the DAO and continue the operations normally. However, with the remainder of the MSS term being short relative to the time required to go through the governance process to request funds, it would only postpone the need for a more holistic path forward.
- Early renewal of the MSS
Another option would be to cut the current cohort’s term short and renew the MSS with fresh elections and a new budget. This would also allow for any necessary adjustments or amendments to the original proposal.
- Wind down the MSS and pass the function over to the Arbitrum Foundation
The last option discussed was passing over the function of the MSS (controlling of DAO funds and executing payments when needed) to the Arbitrum Foundation once the current budget runs out. A hybrid approach where AF acts as a chair but the MSS, as we know it, continues to exist was also discussed, but the Foundation deems it too risky from an opsec perspective.
- OpCo to replace MSS
Although not fully discussed as OpCo isn’t fully operational yet, the idea of OpCo taking over the MSS was also raised.
DAO-wide Discussion
Whatever has been discussed internally and anything that is to be proposed would have to be voted on by the DAO anyway. As such, it makes sense to start having a more public discussion regarding the future of the MSS.