Scroll DAO Suspends Operations Following Mass Resignations - What’s Next for the Protocol?

Scroll DAO grinds to a halt as key team members exit en masse—raising questions about decentralized governance's real-world stability.

The exodus hits hard. Multiple core contributors walked away simultaneously, forcing an immediate operational freeze. No warning, no gradual wind-down—just abrupt radio silence from a project that once promised to revolutionize layer-2 scaling.

Internal turmoil or strategic pivot? Insiders hint at diverging visions between developers and token holders. Some wanted aggressive expansion; others pushed for conservative treasury management. Classic crypto dilemma: grow fast or grow smart?

Community reaction splits between panic and opportunism. Token holders dump positions while degens scout for a potential fire sale—because nothing says 'belief in decentralization' like capitalizing on someone else's failure.

What happens now? The DAO's funds remain locked in multisigs, but without operational oversight, the protocol's future looks increasingly uncertain. Will another team fork the codebase? Or will Scroll become another cautionary tale in the graveyard of overhyped crypto projects?

Remember folks: in crypto, 'decentralization' often means 'no one's responsible when things go wrong.'

Governance In Limbo As Senior Members Depart

The turbulence follows the departure of Eugene Chen, a key figure in the DAO’s leadership. In a farewell message, Chen cited “a recent desire to minimize governance at Scroll” and disagreements with leadership as reasons for his resignation. He added that he could not “in good faith stay at Scroll” under the current direction.

Chen said his last day will be Sept. 30, though he intends to advocate for the community until then.

“While there isn’t any clarity at the moment on where governance at Scroll is headed, the mandate of minimizing governance and slowing down if not halting progressive decentralization is not something that I intend to support,” he wrote.

Another governance member, Jamilya K, expressed shock at the disarray and said she was still processing the changes. She urged community members to wait for the upcoming call for more clarity.

“I joined this space back in 2016 because I saw it as an embodiment of resistance to the status quo,” she said, adding that building the DAO had been “an incredible journey.”

Unfinished Proposals Hang In Balance As Governance Pauses

The shake-up has left several active proposals in limbo. These include a governance council formation, contribution recognition for the May–December 2025 cycle, a treasury management request for proposal and a timelock test. Delegates debated whether such items should still be honored given the pause.

Scroll co-founder Haichen Shen told delegates that governance is being “redesigned” but provided no firm timeline or roadmap.

Another team member, Raza, stressed the importance of using the word “pause” rather than “stop,” reflecting the uncertainty around whether governance would be revived in its current form.

Delegates noted leadership used the word “experiment” multiple times, suggesting a shift toward a more centralized or restructured model. However, there was little clarity on what process will follow or how much decision-making power the community will retain.

Scroll’s $SCR Token Holders Left Waiting For Clarity

Scroll DAO was created as part of the project’s progressive decentralization strategy. It gave $SCR token holders the ability to vote on key proposals. The DAO aimed to guide Scroll’s development, manage its treasury and recognize contributors. Therefore, the suspension marks a critical setback to that vision.

Scroll itself, founded in 2021 by Ye Zhang, Sandy Peng, and Haichen Shen, is one of Ethereum’s most closely watched scaling solutions. Built with zero-knowledge rollup technology, it aims to improve scalability and security by processing transactions off-chain while preserving Ethereum’s trust model.

For now, governance activity remains frozen, with leaders asking for time to “put everything in order.”

Delegates and community members are awaiting more concrete communication on what comes next.