Note: Following DAO restructuring, this newsletter is now independently supported. Delivery cycle may be interrupted as a result.
Welcome
Previous editions — Archived on the Forum
New proposals — Updates via Telegram
ENS Developers — Telegram group for ENS Developers
Working Group Bulletin
Term 7 Meta-Governance Stewards
Meta-Governance stewards oversee DAO governance initiatives, support operations through tooling/process, and manage treasury funds. They can allocate and even reallocate approved budgets in pursuit of the group’s mandate, so long as they stay within DAO rules and the Constitution.
→ Source: Meta-Governance WG
Stewards:
The responsibilities of the Lead Stewards & Secretary are set out in Rule 9.8 and Rule 9.9 of the Working Group Rules.
Calendar
Refer to the official ENS DAO Calendar for meeting links and times. Any other sources are not guaranteed to be accurate. Access the ENS Calendar here.
Proposals
Executable Proposals:
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[Executable] Delegation Incentives Program (Funding Transfer)
This proposal funds the ENS Delegation Incentives Program with 90,000 ENS + 5 ETH, sending treasury assets to the MetaGov stewards multisig for a 3-month pilot that rewards active delegates and delegators, sponsors gas, and returns unused funds to the DAO. -
[Executable] Renewal of the Security Council
This proposal renews the ENS DAO Security Council for another two years by deploying an updated contract with DAO-only extend() logic, keeping its cancel-only veto role intact, rotating one signer, and avoiding future full redeployments for renewal.
Social Proposals:
- [Social] Term 7 Steward Election
This proposal elects three stewards for the Meta-Governance Working Group for Term 7 (July 1, 2026 - June 30, 2027). Voting uses ranked-choice selection with the Copeland method and Shielded Voting, meaning ballots stay private during the voting window and are revealed afterward. The three highest-ranked candidates will be elected, and the election is only valid if it reaches the 1% ENS supply quorum threshold.
→ Governance Dashboard (Community Built): https://ens.gov.blockful.io/proposals
Temp Checks
Next Era of ENS DAO: Empowering the ENS Foundation
This temp check argues ENS DAO should move beyond vote-by-vote operational governance by expanding the ENS Foundation into a real strategic institution: tokenholders keep protocol control and director removal power, while the Foundation takes on treasury stewardship, capital strategy, grants, brand, and Labs funding.
→ Discussion: [Temp Check] Next Era of ENS DAO: Empowering the ENS Foundation
Empowering an Independent ENS Foundation for Accountability
According to its content, this temp check proposes a stronger, more independent ENS Foundation as the DAO’s accountability layer: DAO keeps treasury + protocol control, while a 5-seat board (1 Labs, 4 independent) allocates spend under a DAO-set cap, with override, clawback, and removal powers.
→ Discussion: [Temp Check] Empowering an Independent ENS Foundation for Accountability
Proposal for a New Security Council
This temp check proposes a new ENS Security Council framework with a narrower, more explicit mandate focused on exceptional governance threats. It aims to clarify when intervention is justified, limit discretionary power, and define the council as an emergency backstop rather than a political veto body.
→ Discussion: [Draft] [Social] Proposal for a New Security Council
DAO-Wide Headlines
Avsa.eth shares DAO spending data analysis
@AvsA argues ENS DAO spending has been large but not irrational: about $51.5M total, with Labs the biggest share and the Endowment now ~$30M. His case is that the fix isn’t austerity or token-price games, but a stronger Foundation, new talent, and hard withdrawal limits.
→ Post: avsa.eth on X
Jefflau.eth defends intervention as long-term stewardship
@jefflau.eth argues a governance intervention is not self-dealing but stewardship: the core team that built and sustained ENS believes a more durable foundation is now needed to protect long-term continuity, and sees critics as underestimating the operational realities of governing the protocol.
→ Post: jefflau.eth on X
Nick.eth presents reform as necessary to preserve DAO function
@nick.eth argues governance is structurally failing: delegation is weakening, grant funding has been inefficient, and direct token-weighted treasury allocation no longer works. He describes intervention as a necessary reform to preserve DAO function while shifting operations to the foundation.
→ Post: nick.eth on X
James.eth warns ENS is abandoning decentralization
@James argues ENS governance is failing, but says the answer is reform—not handing treasury control to an insider multisig. He frames Labs’ proposal as a capture risk and calls for an amended plan that preserves DAO treasury control while improving governance design.
→ Post: james.eth on X
Nick.eth clarifies resolver and Security Council plans
Nick says the v2 universal resolver upgrade authority is temporary and will be revoked after launch coordination, rejecting claims of permanent control. He also says Security Council nominations remain open and he does not plan to vote on nominees, though community critics argue these reassurances do not resolve broader concerns about centralization, timing, and trust.
→ Post: spengrah.eth on X
Slobo.eth marks end of ENS Ecosystem Working Group
@slobo.eth says the ENS Ecosystem Working Group has ended, closing his four-and-a-half years as a steward. He reflects on builder funding, community events, and project incubation, frames the moment as a period of change for ENS, and says he will continue supporting ICANN strategy work.
→ Post: slobo.eth on X
OS Contributions
ensjs library updates Universal Resolver proxy and test infrastructure
A recent pull request to the ensjs library updated how the Universal Resolver proxy is handled on Sepolia testnet. The changes point to the UpgradableUniversalResolverProxy address and remove temporary hardcoded resolver mappings. The full test suite of 503 tests confirms proper resolution for both v1 and v2 ENS names.
→ Pull Request: fix(ensjs): use UR proxy address for getAvailable subname traversal by v1rtl · Pull Request #351 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENSjs library adds subname availability checking and resolver fixes
The ENSjs library has been updated to support availability checks for .eth subnames at any depth, not just second-level domains. The update also corrects Universal Resolver addresses for Sepolia and devnet test environments that were pointing to outdated implementations. The enhanced getAvailable function now traverses the registry tree to accurately distinguish between reserved and available subnames.
→ Pull Request: feat(ensjs/getAvailable): support .eth subnames of any depth by v1rtl · Pull Request #349 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENSjs v4.3.1 enforces normalization in getName reverse resolution
ENSjs v4.3.1 has been released with an update to the getName function that enforces normalization checks on reverse resolution results. The function now returns null if the resolved name is not in normalized form, rather than silently coercing it. This change brings ENSjs v4 in line with both viem’s getEnsName behavior and ENSjs v5 standards.
→ Pull Request: [ci] release by github-actions[bot] · Pull Request #346 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENSjs CCIP tests fixed after Sepolia name records were wiped
The ensjs library had four failing CCIP snapshot tests after a Sepolia testnet reset wiped records from the test name testing.ethbuc.eth. The fix switches tests to gregskril.eth, which has stable CCIP resolver records including avatar text, ETH address, and contenthash. All tests now pass, though they remain dependent on live Sepolia state.
→ Pull Request: test(ensjs): fix failing CCIP tests (stale Sepolia name) by v1rtl · Pull Request #347 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENSjs v4 getName now enforces normalization instead of coercing names
A pull request updates ENSjs v4’s getName function to enforce normalization instead of coercing reverse-resolved names. The function now returns null if a name is not already normalized, matching the behavior of viem’s getEnsName and ENSjs v5. The change maintains the existing batching architecture while improving consistency across ENS tooling.
→ Pull Request: fix(ensjs): getName should enforce normalization by v1rtl · Pull Request #345 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENS App v3 upgrades ensjs library to v4.3.0
The ENS App v3 has upgraded to ensjs v4.3.0, fixing a display issue where TON content hashes incorrectly showed ‘null://’ instead of ‘adnl://’. The update also points the app to the latest Universal Resolver contract for improved name resolution on mainnet and Sepolia.
→ Pull Request: chore: upgrade @ensdomains/ensjs to ^4.3.0 by v1rtl · Pull Request #1143 · ensdomains/ens-app-v3 · GitHub
ENSjs library refactored to resolve .eth owners at any depth
A new pull request refactors the ENSjs v2 getOwner action to use UniversalResolver.findOwner, enabling owner resolution for .eth names at any depth through recursive registry traversal. The breaking change updates the parameter signature but only affects v2 exports and does not impact internal library usage.
→ Pull Request: refactor(ensjs): use UR.findOwner for v2 getOwner by v1rtl · Pull Request #354 · ensdomains/ensjs · GitHub
ENS.js getName function updated to enforce normalization
The ENS.js library has been updated to enforce normalization in its getName function. Previously, getName would silently return a different name than what was resolved by coercing it through normalise(). The function now uses viem’s normalize() to verify names are already normalized and returns null otherwise, matching the behavior of viem’s getEnsName and ENS.js v5.
→ GitHub: fix(ensjs): enforce normalization in getName · ensdomains/ensjs@477befd · GitHub
Meta-Governance
The Meta-Governance Working Group provides governance oversight and support for working group operations through DAO tooling and governance initiatives.
ENS endowment posts May 2026 update
ENS reports May endowment AUM at $86.9M, kept near its 60/40 ETH-stables target. The portfolio fell on mark-to-market as ETH dropped 10.5%, but still generated about $216k in strategy yield, while token holder concentration remained broadly unchanged.
→ Report : Endowment Monthly Reports - #42 by kpk
Two-week endowment review
Over the past two weeks, the ENS endowment remains focused on capital preservation while moving toward a 60/40 ETH-stables target. Managers execute yield reallocations, secure new Ether.fi terms, prepare rebalancing trades, and advance policy updates to widen the investment universe.
Blockful launches office hours
Blockful announces recurring office hours to present work and answer community questions on its ENS service provider stream. The first session focuses on the Delegation Incentives System, with future calls covering the Security Council contract, Governor upgrade, and broader year-two plans.
→ Discussion: Blockful - Service Provider Office Hours
SPP3 selection and funding structure
SPP3 received 26 applications and is now finalizing cohort selection, with candidate outreach expected shortly and results to be posted together on the forum. Discussion also focused on shielding the program’s funding flows from Foundation discretion by routing streams to a multisig.
Discussion: Foundation proposal
Discussion centered on fears that shifting treasury control from the DAO to the Foundation would hollow out ENS governance. Participants called for stronger accountability, a genuinely independent board, and more open process, warning that concentrated voting power could undermine community trust.
ENS incentives campaign launches
ENS DAO launched an incentives campaign distributing up to 90k ENS to delegates of active voters. The program aims to increase active delegated supply and strengthen technical governance participation, while giving voters tools and PR support to publicize involvement.
f(x) Protocol Proposes fxUSD & fxSAVE for ENS Treasury Diversification
f(x) Protocol has proposed adding fxUSD and fxSAVE to ENS treasury strategy. The trustless stablecoin is backed by wstETH and WBTC, with the fxSAVE vault offering 6.44% APY from protocol revenue. The proposal suggests this as a diversification option alongside existing USDC and USDS holdings.
→ Discussion: [RFC] Exploring fxUSD & fxSAVE for the ENS Treasury
Ecosystem Updates
Individual developers and teams strengthen the ENS protocol by building ENS-aligned tools, shipping integrations, and sharing updates that expand the ecosystem’s technical and product surface.
Updates from ENS Labs
ENS Labs reports strong developer momentum after ETHConf and ETHGlobal NY, where over 40% of hackers built on ENS. It is testing a new ENS CLI, coordinating ENSv2 library support across the ecosystem, contributing to ICANN’s technical study group, and preparing partners for launch.
ENSWhois adds agent-status API and directory
ENSWhois adds API support for identifying ENS names as agents, using ENS8004-style onchain registration as the canonical pattern. The update includes a new agent endpoint, integration docs, and an ENS Agents Directory that filters names by agent-related ENS records.
→ Discussion: ENSWhois.com: An API-First Data Layer for ENS - #3 by clowes.eth
Rust ENS indexer tests faster subgraph design
A new experimental Rust-based ENS indexer explores whether subgraph-compatible ENS data can be served faster without changing the familiar GraphQL shape. The prototype is not production-ready, but reports strong speed gains through replayable archives, batch writes, and query-specific indexing.
→ Discussion: ensindexer-rs: an experiment in building a faster ENS indexer in Rust
Cloaked showcases privacy-preserving ENS use
Cloaked highlights a privacy use case for ENS by linking a name to rotating, unlinkable addresses instead of one permanent destination. The demo frames ENS not just as human-readable naming infrastructure, but as a flexible identity layer that can also improve transaction privacy.
→ Post: Cloaked on X
Ensemble prototype combines ENS records with AI agent authorization
Ensemble is a research prototype that manages ENS names through natural language and onchain actions. It integrates TEE server wallets with ERC-8004, ENSIP-25, and ENSIP-26 standards, using ENS records as an authority gate that allows operators to revoke agent permissions without touching signing keys.
→ Discussion: Ensemble: an ENS-bound agent with full onchain read/write and an authority gate
Industry trend toward onchain metadata standards includes ENS
Industry observers note a trend toward onchain metadata standards across Web3 projects. ENS participates in this movement through ENSIP-24, which joins other specifications like ERC-8004, ERC-721T, and ERC-8049 in standardizing how metadata is stored on blockchain.
→ Post: premm.eth on X
Note: Posts older than 4 weeks are archival—browse cautiously, as links may be outdated or compromised.
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Thank you for reading! Goodbye. 