The new financial report of Polkadot reveals the project’s crazy spending: the list of influencers on the payroll is unveiled.
On June 28, a report was published regarding the financial management of the Polkadot project, particularly its spending on marketing and outreach. The report revealed expenses of approximately $87 million in the first half of 2024, with over 42% allocated to outreach activities such as influencers, sponsorships, digital advertising, and conferences.
Spending details
The report indicates the following items:
- Influencers: $4.8 million
- Sponsorships: $10 million
- Digital Advertising: $4 million
- Conferences: $4.4 million
Treasury status
According to the report, Polkadot recorded a decline in revenue in the first part of the year, from 414,291 DOT in the second half of 2023 to 171,696 DOT in the first half of 2024. The document, authored by head ambassador Tommi Enenkel, suggests that, at the current spending rate, the treasury has funds for about another two years.
However, Polkadot CEO Fabian Gompf disputed these claims on X, asserting that the Web3 Foundation, the organization behind the project’s development, has financial coverage for over five years without needing to sell any DOT tokens.
Logo and influencer expenses
Another expenditure that fueled the debate within the community on X concerns Polkadot’s logo on the CoinGecko website. An invoice revealed that Polkadot spent $53,333 to create an animated logo for the well-known cryptocurrency data aggregator.
On the same invoice, in addition to the expenditure for the logo, there is also an item indicating expenses for influencers and content creators to promote the project. Among the names paid by Polkadot are several YouTubers from the crypto world.
Reactions
The project’s expenditures have drawn criticism from many users on X, including venture capitalist Adam Cochran, who stated:
The difference between Bitcoin and the rest
Episodes like these once again highlight the stark distinction between Bitcoin and all other cryptocurrencies. While most altcoins heavily rely on centralized structures and hefty marketing budgets, Bitcoin operates autonomously, without the need for a dedicated marketing department. Adoption grows organically, driven by real-world use cases that individual users find in the protocol. This aspect stands in stark contrast to other crypto projects that invest millions of dollars to persuade the public of their utility.
