GoldenTree Reveals $5.2M Investment In SushiSwap (SUSHI)

Asset-management giant GoldenTree has disclosed that it has invested $5.2 million in SUSHI the governance token of the decentralized finance protocol SushiSwap.

The asset management firm has been ramping up its interest in the crypto space and has also revealed a new fund and investment manager in recent months. 

Longstanding Interest 

GoldenTree is a U.S.-based asset management company and has $50 billion in assets under management (AUM). Introducing itself in a post on the SushiSwap community forum, GoldenTree stated that the investment in SUSHI is based on the belief that the project and the token both hold immense potential. It also stated that they have been following the progress of SushiSwap and its community for a considerable amount of time and are excited by the community’s potential, innovation, and resilience. 

The post talked about the challenges faced by the project and community, stating, 

“Although the community has certainly been through some tough challenges, we’ve been amazed at the resilience of both the core team and the community in the face of these speed bumps as you all have continued to build and release top-tier products.” 

GoldenChain To Manage Investment

GoldenTree’s investment into SushiSwap will be managed by the digital assets-focused arm of the asset management company, GoldenChain Asset Management. This arm of GoldenTree was created in March to expand investments in digital assets and will see head Avi Felman take a more proactive role within the Sushi community. 

GoldenChain has stated that it will focus on assisting SushiSwap in its tokenomics and strategy. In a tweet, Avi Felman elaborated further, stating, 

“There are many reasons we like Sushi (detailed in the post), but a core reason is that it represents some of the best of DeFi. We think there is a lot to do and that a lot will be accomplished over the coming months.”

SushiSwap’s Leadership Change 

The GoldenTree investment announcement comes only days after the SushiSwap community voted on a critical leadership change. The community on Monday elected Jared Grey as CEO, following months of controversy and realignment focused on the protocol’s governance. Grey’s selection as CEO was preceded by months of turbulence that saw significant organizational difficulties at the decentralized protocol. 

In September 2021, CEO and founding member 0xMaki left the project, being pried away for an external advisory position. Shortly after, in December, the protocol’s Chief Technology Officer, Joseph Delong, also left the protocol, taking up a similar role at NFT lending protocol Astaria. Despite the uncertainty, SushiSwap has been shoring up its commitment to crypto. In July 2021, the firm added an undisclosed amount of Bitcoin to its balance sheet. The beginning of 2022 saw the protocol introduce its new digital investment strategy, which also included GoldenChain and a team of 10 “crypto natives.”

Governance Change

The appointment of Grey comes with SushiSwap, with over $23 billion in total value locked (TVL), proposing to redesign its governance from being run by a DAO to being run by a corporation and two foundations. This was done under legal advice, which arose from the CFTC’s litigation of DAO-run crypto lender Ooki.

Ooki had come in the CFTC’s crosshairs for violating the Commodities Exchange Act (CEA). If the SushiSwap community accepts the proposal, the protocol will be incorporated in Panama. 

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.