TreasureDAO has announced the shutdown of its ZKsync-based Treasure Chain on May 30, following the approval of TIP-52. This decision comes nearly five months after implementing urgent cost-cutting measures and obtaining temporary emergency powers.
The Treasure Chain, which operates on ZKsync’s layer-2 scaling solution, will be discontinued by May 30 as per the passed TIP-52. The core team has been granted emergency powers to manage the shutdown without the need for additional votes.
Treasure Chain Wind-Down⛓️🌇
Following the successful ratification of TIP-52, the Treasure Chain will shut down on May 30, 2025. Holders must bridge out all ETH, MAGIC, SMOL, and NFT holdings by the end of May.
Additional updates, timelines, and next steps are outlined below👇
— Treasure (@Treasure_DAO) May 6, 2025
On May 6, the TreasureDAO team advised users to bridge out all assets and non-fungible tokens by the end of May as part of the wind-down process. This strategic move aims to reduce costs and refocus efforts on product development.
“Bridging to Treasure Chain has been discontinued,” the team stated. They also mentioned that “MAGIC-ETH has been migrated to L1 Ethereum and is now tradable on Uniswap,” while “SMOL-MAGIC liquidity migration to L1 is underway.” Despite the chain shutdown, the team reassured stakeholders of their strong operational position, with a USDC runway extended through Fall 2026.
“Treasure is in a strong position, with our USDC runway extended through Fall 2026 — excluding a recovering MAGIC treasury. The Treasure Chain wind-down will accelerate our product development and reduce operational costs, positioning us for the next stage of growth.”
TreasureDAO
Although the decision to shut down the mainnet may seem daunting, the team views it as a necessary step for organizational progress. They emphasized that retiring the chain was imperative given the circumstances, not a choice.
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However, the shutdown entails financial challenges. Co-founder John Patten highlighted the DAO’s unsustainable burn rate, potentially depleting the runway by late 2025. The cost of maintaining the Treasure Chain amounted to approximately $450,000 annually, a burden the treasury could no longer sustain, especially with gradual unlocks of ZKsync grants.
To facilitate the transition, the proposal enables the team to oversee approximately 3.18 million MAGIC and 138 ETH in DAO-owned liquidity. TreasureDAO clarified that the shutdown serves as an emergency measure in response to exceptional circumstances, rather than a permanent alteration to DAO governance principles.
TreasureDAO was an early contributor to Arbitrum before launching its own chain on ZKsync. At its peak, the platform facilitated over 95% of gaming and NFT transactions on Arbitrum, with a marketplace volume exceeding $260 million since inception, as reported by Nansen.
Read more: Arbitrum’s $ARB incentives failed to retain users, says Pink Brains