Kamino ties CEO's KMNO allocation to sustained valuations as foundation denies holders revenue claim

CEO pay tied to lasting token value

Michael Weisz, CEO of Kamino, will get most of his KMNO allocation only if token valuation levels are reached and held for a period of time, according to Kamino's November 3 release. Kamino is a lending protocol on Solana, meaning a service where users can borrow and lend crypto assets.

The same release says KMNO holders have no claim on foundation revenue, distributions or equity. It also says the foundation will commit $20 million over 24 months to growth plans.

Key numbers

• $20 million committed by the foundation over 24 months.
• $607,996 in trailing 30-day protocol revenue, according to DefiLlama.
• $0 in tracked trailing 30-day holder revenue, according to DefiLlama.
• Fees are reported as $5 million in the main text, while the supporting facts list $4.67 million.
• At 20:12 UTC on November 3, CryptoSlate showed KMNO at about $0.034, with a $200 million market capitalization and $20 million in 24-hour trading volume.

What Kamino's November 3 release says

Most of Weisz's KMNO allocation vests only when progressively higher valuation milestones are reached and sustained. A temporary price increase does not meet the requirement, the release says.

The release does not give the numerical milestones or the period each level must be sustained. It also does not say that every founder, contributor or investor allocation follows the same rules.

Kamino says the foundation has no shareholders, members or beneficiaries. It is run by an independent board and receives all onchain and offchain revenue and intellectual property.

The release states: “KMNO is not a claim on Foundation revenue, distributions or equity.”

Kamino also says the foundation holds reserves beyond the $20 million growth commitment. The commitment is for spending on expansion over two years, not a payment to tokenholders.

What DefiLlama tracked in 30 days

DefiLlama captured Kamino data at 20:10 UTC on November 3. It recorded $607,996 in protocol revenue over the preceding 30 days and $0 in holder revenue.

Fees and revenue are different measures. Fees are charges from tracked activity. Protocol revenue is the part kept by the protocol. Holder revenue is value tracked as reaching holders.

For lending products, DefiLlama includes interest, liquidation charges and origination charges in fees. Revenue includes interest spreads, part of liquidation charges and all origination charges. For liquidity products, it includes the protocol's share of liquidity fees.

The source material gives two fee figures. The main text reports $5 million, while the supporting facts list $4.67 million for the same trailing 30-day period. The $607,996 revenue and $0 holder revenue figures are consistent across both parts.

What is confirmed

Kamino's release confirms the CEO vesting condition, the $20 million commitment over 24 months, and the statement that KMNO is not a claim on foundation revenue, distributions or equity.

DefiLlama confirms $607,996 in tracked protocol revenue and $0 in tracked holder revenue for the 30 days before its November 3 snapshot.

What is still unclear

The numerical valuation milestones and the time each must be sustained are not supplied.

The release says future plans, including potential programs to support KMNO, may change. No terms for any future program are given.

Protocol data is not a foundation financial statement. Zero tracked holder revenue does not measure every possible holder benefit, and foundation revenue figures are based on Kamino's disclosure.

Why this matters for KMNO holders

Protocol revenue shows what tracked operations retained during the period. It does not by itself show a payout to holders.

To judge a future holder benefit, readers would need further details on how foundation resources are allocated, including spending on growth, reserves and any future token-support program. The release gives no such allocation terms.

Sources

• CryptoSlate