BitDAO, a prominent decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), has successfully passed the BIP-21 proposal aimed at optimizing its native token and undergoing a rebranding process. The approved measure, backed by a significant majority vote on May 19, paves the way for the transformation of the BIT token into Mantle as the DAO prepares to launch its new layer-2 mainnet.
Initially introduced as the "One brand, One token" principle, the BIP-21 proposal sought to consolidate the BitDAO ecosystem under a unified brand. The voting results revealed that approximately 235 million BIT tokens were in favor of the proposal, while only 988 BIT tokens voted against it. Consequently, the BIT token will eventually transition into MANTLE, as confirmed in an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session referenced in a Mantle blog post.
The rebranding process is primarily cosmetic and will have no impact on the governance of BitDAO. According to the BIP-21 snapshot, these changes are designed to reduce confusion, harmonize branding, and optimize the overall BitDAO ecosystem in preparation for the mainnet launch. BitDAO was established in 2021 following a successful $230 million funding round led by renowned billionaire investor Peter Thiel, known for his involvement in various high-profile ventures such as Meta (formerly Facebook), Airbnb, LinkedIn, and Stripe. Bybit, a cryptocurrency exchange based in Dubai, is among the contributors supporting BitDAO. With the BIP-21 proposal now in the rearview, the focus for Mantle shifts towards the implementation of its mainnet. The aforementioned AMA clarified that the proposal and its execution will not significantly delay the launch of Mantle's mainnet. The anticipated timeline for the Mantle L2 mainnet launch is set for the second quarter of 2023, as indicated at the time of publication. Meanwhile, the team and community members will continue to explore potential processes for token conversion, as stated in the AMA. While an exact date for the conversion has not been announced, the blog post assures holders that the conversion will occur before the deployment of the Mantle L2 mainnet. This approach aims to spare token holders from incurring gas fees associated with the conversion, demonstrating BitDAO's commitment to user convenience and a smooth transition process.
