Why we led NEAR's first post-halving governance proposal

I want to share some context on a governance proposal we authored that passed last week through NEAR Protocol's House of Stake platform. This marks the first evolution of NEAR's economic structure following the October 2025 halving event—and it's a case study in how we think about active participation in protocol governance.

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The infrastructure gap we addressed

NEAR Protocol's Chain Signatures allows users to control assets and execute transactions across multiple blockchains from a single NEAR account. The architecture works through a network of multi-party computation (MPC) nodes that collectively generate cryptographic signatures without any single node accessing complete private keys.

This is the infrastructure layer that powers NEAR Intents—the platform that's processed over $13B in total trading volume by enabling users to execute actions across different networks without managing multiple wallets or bridging funds between chains.

But here's the structural problem: MPC node operators provide the cryptographic backbone for this technology, yet lacked adequate economic incentives to scale to increase decentralization and resilience. Without a sustainable economic design, the MPC nodes network risked being unable to meet growing application demand.

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Why SVRN led this initiative

Our business model depends on the health, scalability, and adoption of the NEAR Protocol ecosystem. We maintain a significant NEAR treasury position and are focused on commercializing NEAR's infrastructure.

This isn't passive treasury management. By actively participating in protocol governance, we work to ensure the technical and economic foundations remain robust to support institutional-grade applications. Chain Signatures and MPC nodes are foundational to everything we're building.

The proposal we designed introduces native NEAR token incentives for node operators based on their participation and performance. This creates sustainable economics that attract professional infrastructure providers and ensure the network can handle institutional-scale demand.

A more resilient and capable infrastructure layer increases the utility and ultimately adoption of NEAR Protocol—which directly aligns with our strategic position as both a treasury manager and a company building commercial products on the network.

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How the governance process worked

The proposal passed following several weeks of transparent discussion on House of Stake. We presented the technical design, economic rationale, and expected impact to ecosystem stakeholders, addressing questions and incorporating feedback before the final token-weighted vote.

Chain Signatures are the connective tissue between NEAR and every other network—Web2, Web3, and traditional finance. For that infrastructure to scale and maintain security, node operators need a clear and sustainable incentive model. The community-backed approval demonstrates alignment between our strategic interests and the broader ecosystem's priorities.

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Why this matters strategically

This governance win demonstrates how we think about value creation: actively shaping the protocol's development rather than passively holding tokens.

NEAR's chain signature technology sits at the center of the infrastructure we're building commercial products around. Our ability to deliver enterprise-grade AI solutions on NEAR depends on the protocol's technical capabilities and economic sustainability. By ensuring the MPC infrastructure receives adequate incentives, we strengthen the foundation that both protects our treasury holdings and enables our commercial strategy.

The framework establishes sustainable economics for the network infrastructure that enables $13B in cross-chain transaction volume through NEAR Intents. It's designed to scale alongside application demand—creating conditions where the protocol can support the institutional customers we're pursuing.

I still contend that active, efficient treasury management and active participation in ecosystem growth is how winners will emerge in this cycle. This proposal is an example of what that looks like in practice: not just holding assets, but actively working to ensure the underlying protocol infrastructure can support the applications and adoption that drive long-term value.

The approval marks the first successful governance proposal to evolve NEAR Protocol's economics post-halving. And it reflects what decentralized governance is supposed to deliver: community-driven, technically grounded decisions that strengthen the protocol's economic foundation.