ENS community member Christoph Jentzsch proposed on X on July 2 that the ENS DAO dissolve itself, stating "ENS DAO is broken," suggesting burning the ENSv2 Universal Router key (set to 0x00) and distributing remaining funds to formally transition ENS into public infrastructure.
EP 6.45 Vote Failed: Johnson Controls ~80% of Voting Share, On-chain Result 82% Against
EP 6.45 was an on-chain proposal to update the ENS DAO Security Council's operations; the Security Council consists of 4 out of 8 members with multi-signature authority to cancel malicious proposals that have passed governance and entered the timelock queue, with terms originally set to expire on July 24. This renewal was split into two stages: an off-chain snapshot vote (passed) and a binding on-chain executable vote (failed). Johnson abstained in the snapshot vote, stating he supported renewal but "does not support the current member lineup," then voted against in the binding on-chain vote.
According to vote.ensdao.org data, as of June 30 the on-chain vote result was 82% against; Johnson controlled approximately 3.26 million ENS tokens, accounting for about 80% of the voting power in this election, roughly half of all ENS tokens currently delegated to any address.
Root Cause: ENS Foundation Treasury Proposal and Johnson's Self-Delegation Operation
According to The Defiant, the council dispute originated from a proposal titled "The Next Era of ENS DAO: Empowering the ENS Foundation" released on June 19, 2026 by ENS Labs COO Katherine Wu. The proposal aimed to transfer the DAO's operational wallet, ENS token holdings, and the endowment managed by Karpatkey to a five-member ENS Foundation board, with proposed members including two from ENS Labs, two affiliated with Aragon, and ETHGlobal founder Kartik Talwar.
On June 22, Johnson stated he would delegate his own ENS holdings to others to support the proposal. Security Council member Brantley Millegan said on the governance forum that this move was "tantamount to ENS Labs' seizure of the treasury" and stated that if the proposal passed primarily through votes aligned with Labs against community opposition, "by all common definitions, that is a governance attack."
Rotki founder Lefteris Karapetsas wrote in the forum that Johnson "transferred about 50% of the voting power to himself, effectively becoming the DAO."
ENS Labs COO Releases Successor Security Council Draft, Nomination Window Closes July 3
According to The Defiant, hours after the EP 6.45 vote failed, ENS Labs COO Katherine Wu released a draft proposal for the successor council. Key terms of the draft include:
· Council consists of 8 members;
· Proposal veto threshold raised to 5 of 8 (5/8);
· Veto power scope clearly limited to "malicious, coercive, or exploitative governance attacks";
· Each member must sign a legal appointment agreement with the ENS Foundation.
The nomination window for the successor council closes July 3; Johnson has self-nominated in the forum, stating he "agrees with the new Security Council mandate and charter and will act strictly in accordance with them," while noting DAO participation in this vote reached 87%.
Jentzsch Dissolution Proposal: Burn ENSv2 Universal Router Key and Distribute Remaining Funds
Jentzsch suggested on X that the ENS DAO should burn the ENSv2 Universal Router key (set to 0x00) and distribute remaining funds to formally transition ENS into public infrastructure. Jentzsch's post cited a tweet from representative spengrah.eth stating that ENS Labs "through founder Nick" is attempting to simultaneously control the DAO's operations, funds, and Security Council, "the DAO has been captured; voting power is concentrated in Labs' hands and used to take nearly unilateral actions."
As of reporting, this dissolution proposal has not been submitted as a formal governance topic to the ENS forum, nor has it been presented for any DAO vote.
ENS DAO Treasury Size: Karpatkey Manages ~71% of Funds, ENS Market Cap ~$175 Million
According to the ENS governance forum, the endowment managed by Karpatkey was authorized by a DAO vote in November 2022, with an initial injection of 16,000 ETH in March 2023; as of Karpatkey's most recent public report, approximately 71% of DAO funds are held in this endowment, with the remainder in the operational wallet and registration controller contract.
According to CoinGecko data, ENS was trading at approximately $4.33 at the time of reporting, with a market cap near $175 million, down about 95% from its November 2021 peak (when the token airdrop debuted with a market cap of $1 billion).
Governance Pending Items Timeline: July 3 to July 5
According to The Defiant and the ENS governance forum, currently unresolved major governance items and deadlines are as follows:
July 3, 2026: Nomination window for successor Security Council closes (per Wu's draft)
July 5, 2026 (8:59 PM ET): EP 6.45 on-chain Security Council vote closes
Not yet in snapshot vote: ENS Foundation interim review ("Empowering the ENS Foundation" proposal) has not reached formal snapshot stage
Not yet formally submitted: Jentzsch's DAO dissolution proposal has not been submitted as a formal governance topic to the ENS forum, nor has it been presented for any DAO vote
FAQ
What is EP 6.45 and why did it fail?
EP 6.45 is an on-chain proposal to update the ENS DAO Security Council's membership and operations; the council's term was originally set to expire on July 24. ENS co-founder Nick Johnson voted against in the binding on-chain vote, with his controlled approximately 3.26 million ENS tokens accounting for about 80% of the voting share; as of June 30, the on-chain vote result was 82% against.
What is Christoph Jentzsch's specific plan for dissolving the ENS DAO?
Jentzsch suggests burning the ENSv2 Universal Router key (set to 0x00) and distributing remaining funds to formally transition ENS into public infrastructure. As of reporting, this proposal has not been submitted as a formal governance topic to the ENS forum, nor has it entered any DAO voting process.
What governance matters are currently pending for the ENS DAO?
According to The Defiant and the ENS governance forum, the successor Security Council nomination window closes July 3, the EP 6.45 on-chain vote closes July 5; the ENS Foundation interim review has not yet entered a formal snapshot vote, and Jentzsch's dissolution proposal has not yet been formally submitted.
