As part of its commitment to bootstrapping MakerDAO, the Maker Foundation is pleased to announce the next phase of its board of directors. The most recent members of the board, who have provided exceptional guidance since March 2019, will shift their focus inward and continue to work with the Foundation. 

The Maker Foundation’s new board of directors, appointed on April 27, 2020, consists of two highly qualified independent members and two well-known members of the current Foundation team—Rune Christensen, Co-founder of MakerDAO and current CEO of the Maker Foundation, and Steven Becker, COO and President of the Maker Foundation.  

New member and Board Chairperson Tonya M. Evans, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law, directs the school’s Blockchain, Cryptocurrency and Law online professional certificate program. Her passion for financial inclusion through digital assets is a natural complement to Maker’s vision. 

“I am so honored to join this next phase of the Foundation and to lead its efforts as a member of the larger Maker community,” says Evans. “I am eager to engage in this important work with fellow members, especially at this critical moment for the ecosystem, to fulfill the board’s primary goals of community growth and decentralization, and to ensure the original vision of global financial inclusion.”

Joining Tonya as an independent board member is Shefali Roy, COO and Chief Compliance Officer of TrueLayer. Shefali boasts a wealth of experience in compliance and regulatory affairs within the financial services industry. She previously oversaw Apple’s regional compliance in Europe, the Middle East, India, and Africa, and later joined Stripe as MLRO and Chief Compliance Officer for Europe. Her experience will help Maker navigate the ever-evolving regulatory landscape.

“I'm extremely delighted to join the Maker Foundation as an independent board member,” says Roy. “As we live in an ever-changing new age of building community and economic sustainability, the Foundation is uniquely positioned to engage all Maker stakeholders and facilitate the decentralization of a global financial transaction system. I could not be more thrilled to have a seat at the table and assist  the organization in doing that.”

Recruiting two highly respected and valued voices from outside the Foundation team pool helps to ensure the board has the experience required to fuel the next phase of growth and guide MakerDAO to full decentralization with transparency and accountability. Choosing Evans and Roy also reflects Maker’s commitment to strengthen the board’s skill set and expand diversity at the Foundation. Diverse leadership is crucial, especially in the blockchain sphere of the financial services industry, a sector in which female participation is low. 

Board Scope 

As promised last year, the new board will provide appropriate oversight of strategic and financial direction for the Foundation. Directors will also regularly review the progress of the Foundation’s leadership in achieving strategic objectives and, when necessary, approve adjustments. Additionally, the board may seek advisors and visionaries with expertise in operating open-source projects and implementing/operating financial inclusion programs. No Foundation board member has any special or unique oversight of MakerDAO, the Maker Protocol, or the Maker Community.

In short, the board will focus the Foundation on bootstrapping a sustainable, well-controlled growth of MakerDAO, while leadership is tasked with internal day-to-day decision-making.

Finally, in conjunction with the Foundation’s Human Resources department, the new board is currently conducting a search for a third independent director.

The Path to Decentralization

Join the ongoing discussion about the path to decentralization of the Maker Protocol and more in the Maker Forum.