Badger DAO

The history of Badger DAO (BADGER) began in September 2020 when it was launched by its founder, Chris Spadafora, and his team of developers, including Ameer Rosic, Albert Castellana, and Alberto Cevallos. The project aimed to integrate Bitcoin and other blockchains into the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem, allowing users to utilize tokenized Bitcoin (WBTC or renBTC) as collateral within the Ethereum DeFi ecosystem.

Badger DAO was designed to provide infrastructure for the development of DeFi applications, focusing on equity and decentralization of token distribution. The community that runs the project is centered around governance and decision-making, with token holders participating in voting on proposals related to the platform's development and growth.

In December 2021, Badger DAO faced a significant hack, where an attacker drained funds from user wallets using malicious contract permissions. The hack resulted in a loss of approximately $130 million, with $9 million being recoverable. The incident led to a pause in all smart contracts and an investigation by cybersecurity firms Mandiant and Chainalysis.

Despite this setback, Badger DAO continues to operate as a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), with its governance token, BADGER, playing a crucial role in decision-making and community engagement. The platform has expanded to other networks like BSC, Polygon, and Arbitrum, offering a range of DeFi strategies and tools for users to maximize their tokenized Bitcoin holdings.

Badger DAO (BADGER) is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) that focuses on integrating Bitcoin into decentralized finance (DeFi) by building infrastructure and products to accelerate its use across various blockchains. Here is an overview of how it works:

Governance and Decision-Making

Badger DAO operates on the Ethereum blockchain and employs a decentralized governance structure, where decisions are made by the community through voting. BADGER token holders participate in governance by proposing and voting on new proposals related to ecosystem growth and development. This ensures that the project remains community-led and transparent.

SETT Vaults and Yield Aggregation

One of the primary products of Badger DAO is SETT, an automated DeFi aggregator that allows users to deposit assets and earn yield. SETT vaults are designed to optimize yield for Bitcoin holders by executing various strategies across DeFi protocols. Users can deposit over twenty different Bitcoin-linked crypto assets, which are automatically distributed to the best risk-adjusted rewards in the DeFi sector. These rewards can be set to automatically re-deposit into the user's SETT vault, improving their principal investment.

ibBTC and Synthetic Tokens

Badger DAO also introduces Interest Bearing BTC (ibBTC), a synthetic token collateralized by an index of top Bitcoin-pegged assets in DeFi. Users can mint ibBTC by providing assets such as wBTC, renBTC, sBTC, or tBTC to SETT vaults. This allows them to earn interest on their holdings. The developers aim to expand the list of supported assets in the future.

Badger Bridge and Token Utility

The Badger Bridge protocol is a critical component of the ecosystem, enabling the creation of pegged tokens that can enter other DeFi networks. This allows Bitcoin holders to earn a yield for holding the native utility token BADGER. BADGER is an ERC-20 token that enables users to participate in the DAO and vote on proposals. The more BADGER tokens held, the more weight the user's vote carries, ensuring that those with a financial interest in the network have the most influence.

Token Distribution and Rewards

BADGER tokens are distributed through airdrops to users who have demonstrated an active interest in Bitcoin DeFi and community governance, early contributors to the DAO, and as staking rewards for participation in SETT. The token distribution is designed to be fair and transparent, ensuring that all participants have the opportunity to benefit from the project's growth.

Security and Technology

Badger DAO employs the latest security measures and protocols to ensure the safety of users and their assets. The platform operates on the Ethereum blockchain and utilizes smart contracts and an oracle system to pass real-time information. Liquidity providers play a crucial role in maintaining the necessary liquidity of the platform.

Overall, Badger DAO aims to create a self-governing and decentralized financial ecosystem that integrates Bitcoin into DeFi, providing users with a secure and reliable infrastructure for staking, farming, and lending their crypto assets.

The token Badger DAO (BADGER) has several strengths that contribute to its value and potential for growth. Here are some key points:

1. Governance and Community Involvement: BADGER token holders have a significant role in the governance of the platform, allowing them to vote on proposals and participate in decision-making processes. This community-driven approach fosters a sense of ownership and encourages active participation in the project's development.

2. DeFi Integration and Infrastructure: Badger DAO provides infrastructure for the development of DeFi applications, focusing on Bitcoin as a reserve asset. This unique approach connects Bitcoin and Ethereum, creating new opportunities for users. The platform includes various tools such as Sett, DIGG, and Badger Bridges, which enhance the overall DeFi experience.

3. Reward Mechanisms: BADGER token holders receive a portion of the fees generated by DeFi applications running on the Badger infrastructure. Additionally, users can earn BADGER tokens through staking and developer mining, incentivizing participation and contributing to the token's value appreciation.

4. Security and Stability: Badger DAO employs mechanisms to maintain the health and stability of the BADGER token economy. These include burning tokens to limit supply and promote value appreciation, ensuring the token does not appreciate too quickly.

5. Decentralization and Transparency: As a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), Badger DAO operates on the Ethereum blockchain, ensuring transparency and security. The platform's open-source nature and use of smart contracts further enhance its decentralized and transparent nature.

6. Liquidity and Trading: BADGER tokens are listed on several major exchanges, including Binance, Huobi Global, and Uniswap, providing liquidity and trading opportunities for users.

These strengths collectively contribute to the value and potential of the BADGER token, making it an attractive option for investors interested in DeFi and decentralized governance.

Badger DAO (BADGER) is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) that focuses on enabling Bitcoiners to take advantage of decentralized finance (DeFi) features and services. Despite its innovative approach, the project carries several financial risks that investors should be aware of:

Smart Contract Risk

Earning yield with BadgerDAO requires interacting with smart contracts, which can sometimes fail or be prone to attacks. If there's a bug in the code, bad actors may take advantage, leading to a loss of funds. To reduce this risk, audits are carried out by third parties and independent security researchers, and a bug bounty program incentivizes actors to disclose any unfound bugs within the smart contracts.

Admin Keys

The Dev Multisig address maintains contract upgradability rights, sets key parameters to all products, controls the treasury, and manages all permissions. While a 3-out-of-5 signer requirement and a 48-hour timelock reduce the probability of the Dev Multisig address being exploited, there is still a risk of unauthorized actions.

Strategy Risks

Some yield-earning strategies within Vaults use smart contracts from third-party platforms. Each strategy has a unique risk profile depending on what contracts and tokens it interacts with. To minimize this, Badger DAO only seeks out trusted DeFi platforms with a strong reputation to ensure the safety of user funds.

Asset Risk

Crypto assets deposited into Vaults, Badger native assets (e.g., BADGER and DIGG), and third-party tokens issued as rewards to BadgerDAO users (e.g., xSUSHI and CVX) are volatile and subject to market fluctuations. Assets that attempt to maintain a 1:1 peg with other assets (e.g., DIGG to BTC or ibBTC to BTC) may fail to achieve their peg due to market conditions or smart contract failure.

Impermanent Loss Risk

Some Vaults require users to deposit Liquidity Provider (LP) tokens to receive rewards. LP tokens are obtained by depositing equal value amounts of two crypto assets into a smart contract that allows other users to swap between assets in the pair. Providing liquidity exposes users to loss when the two assets diverge in price. Users can suffer losses if the rewards paid for providing liquidity do not compensate for the impermanent loss caused by asset price divergence.

These financial risks highlight the importance of thorough research and risk assessment before investing in Badger DAO (BADGER).

• Chris Spadafora (Spadaboom): Founder of BadgerDAO, known for his role in launching eBTC, a stETH-backed synthetic bitcoin token, and focusing on security after a major exploit in 2021.
• Ameer Rosic: Co-founder of BadgerDAO, involved in the project's development and governance.
• Albert Castellana: Co-founder of BadgerDAO, contributing to the project's infrastructure and DeFi applications.
• Alberto Cevallos: Co-founder of BadgerDAO, participating in the project's development and community governance.
• Hal Badger: Core team member, with a background in software development and data visualization.