The post Polkadot Marketing Cost Controversy Sparks Claims of Discrimination appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

In brief Polkadot’s recent $37 million marketing spend has sparked debate over financial management. A community member alleges discrimination against Asian founders in grant allocations. We do the research, you get the alpha! Get exclusive reports and access to key insights on airdrops, NFTs, and more! Subscribe now to Alpha Reports and up your game! Go to Alpha Reports Polkadot’s recent spending has ignited a firestorm of debate among stakeholders who fear the project is burning through cash fast. But the outcry has given way to a new controversy as some within the Polkadot community say it’s not just a problem of how much is being spent but also on whom, alleging discrimination. Victor Ji, co-founder of Manta Network, criticized Polkadot’s ecosystem as “highly toxic” Tuesday, urging Asian founders to consider development work on other platforms. In an interview with Decrypt, Ji said projects based in Asia aren’t getting the same treatment as Western ones applying for Polkadot grants, while also being underrepresented on social media. “I’m not trying to raise controversial stuff,” he said. “I don’t think we get comparable support, […] and we aren’t the only ones. I talked to a lot of founders, particularly ones based in China.” A recent treasury report showed Polkadot, a blockchain network developed by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood, spent $37 million on marketing initiatives in the first half of this year—nearly half of its total spend of $87 million so far. Containing around $245 million worth of DOT, the report estimated that the treasury also has two years of runway left at its current spending clip. “Marketing expenditures, when done responsibly and in a targeted way, are a source of revenue growth,” Katie Butler, a co-founder of Distractive, a marketing agency committed to the Polkadot ecosystem, told Decrypt in a written statement.…

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Filed under: News - @ July 4, 2024 11:26 am