SEC Ends Aave Investigation as DAO Fee Dispute Continues, AAVE Price Stays Flat

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially ended its four-year investigation into Aave Protocol, marking a major regulatory milestone for one of the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. The decision, confirmed by Aave founder Stani Kulechov, indicates that the SEC does not intend to pursue enforcement action against the protocol, effectively reinforcing the view that the AAVE token is not a security. Despite the significance of this development, the market reaction has been muted, with the AAVE price remaining largely unchanged.

In a post on X, Kulechov explained that the prolonged investigation required substantial time, resources, and legal effort to protect Aave, its ecosystem, and the broader DeFi sector. He noted that DeFi has faced increasing regulatory scrutiny over the years, and the closure of the SEC probe represents a turning point for builders in the space. Expressing optimism about the future, he stated that the industry can now focus more fully on innovation and growth, reiterating his belief that decentralized finance will ultimately prevail.

According to TradingView data, AAVE is trading around $188, down nearly 3% over the past 24 hours. The token briefly fell to approximately $185 amid broader market volatility, suggesting that macro crypto conditions outweighed the positive regulatory news in the short term.

At the same time, internal governance tensions within the Aave ecosystem continue to attract attention. Kulechov addressed claims that Aave Labs diverted CoW Swap fees away from the DAO treasury, clarifying that the surplus revenue originates outside the core protocol and from a separate product feature. He added that Aave Labs still plans to share this revenue with the DAO. Similar accusations regarding Horizon RWA revenues were also denied, with Kulechov stating that Horizon is, in fact, generating income for the DAO treasury.

He emphasized that Aave Labs has spent the past five years building products that expand protocol revenue and long-term value. Kulechov concluded by arguing that growth-focused strategies, including AAVE buybacks, may be more impactful than short-term revenue debates, as the ecosystem competes aggressively to scale and innovate.