Uniswap CEO Hayden Adams denied on September 12, 2024, that the company charged decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols for protocol deployments.
Uniswap CEO Hayden Adams denied on September 12, 2024, that the company charged decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols for protocol deployments.
Hayden Adams Denial. Source: Twitter
The allegations surfaced following a tweet from Alexander, an X user, who claimed that Uniswap was seeking developers for $20 million after deeming a recent deployment useless.
This controversy began when Kene Ezeji-Okoye, co-founder of Millicent Labs, alleged that Uniswap had charged $10 million for deployment and an additional $10 million or user incentives related to carbon credit trading. These claims led to Alexander’s assertion that Uniswap was exploiting developers for substantial sums.
In response, Adams clarified on X that neither Uniswap Labs nor the Uniswap Foundation charges any fees for deploying the protocol. He emphasized that all deployments occur through governance votes, reflecting the decentralized nature of the system.
Adams further explained that the process of deploying the Uniswap interface on new blockchain networks depends on the activity level and the effort required, but no financial demands are involved.
Adams’ public denial was an effort to correct the misleading claims and reassure the community that Uniswap’s deployment processes remain transparent and decentralized.
Uniswap recently faced legal challenges with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which charged the company on September 4, 2024, for providing illegal leveraged cryptocurrency trading services to U.S. retail investors. The company resolved the charges by agreeing to pay a $175,000 civil penalty and to stop violating the Commodity Exchange Act.
In April 2024, the SEC accused Uniswap of operating an unregistered securities exchange. Uniswap responded by asserting that it is a software company, not an exchange or broker, and criticized the SEC for protecting outdated systems over consumers. CEO Hayden Adams voiced his frustration on X, stating the need to defend both the company and the DeFi industry from what he views as regulatory overreach.
Despite these challenges, Uniswap remains one of the leading decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms, facilitating token swaps across multiple blockchain networks. As of September 12, 2024, it held approximately $4.35 billion in total value locked (TVL), according to DefiLlama.
