The Uniswap Foundation, a non-profit organization supporting the development and governance of the Uniswap protocol, has published its 2024 financial report, revealing $5.79 million in operational expenses and $1.11 million in revenue from sources such as donations, interest, and dividends.
While the foundation ran at a deficit last year, it still holds a healthy reserve of $29.8 million in fiat and stablecoins, along with 590,000 UNI tokens earmarked for ongoing grants, operations, and incentives through 2025.
Where the Money Went: Salaries, Audits, and Ecosystem Growth
The largest portion of the Foundation’s spending—$3.13 million—was allocated to payroll, covering salaries, employee benefits, and taxes. Another $1.68 million was spent on professional services, which included legal consultation, technical audits, and accounting support.
Other notable expenses included:
- $290,000 on advertising and marketing, such as web development, agency partnerships, and event promotion;
- $174,000 for travel and event participation, including external conferences;
- $116,000 in office-related costs like software tools and internal team gatherings;
- $290,000 in insurance, primarily directors and officers (D&O) coverage;
- Nearly $116,000 on hackathon support, signaling a strong focus on developer engagement.
Grant Commitments: $14.8M Pledged, $9.9M Disbursed
Despite a modest revenue year, the Uniswap Foundation continued investing heavily in its grants program, committing $14.8 million throughout 2024. Of that, $9.9 million was disbursed, including $3.1 million in Q4 alone.
A key priority was developer onboarding and ecosystem education. The Foundation reported spending $4.59 million on initiatives like Uniday and global hackathons, helping onboard more than 1,000 new developers to the Uniswap ecosystem.
Other major grant allocations included:
- $2.19 million for research initiatives, and
- $1.54 million directed toward governance enhancements.
Foundation’s Outlook: Laying Groundwork for Long-Term Value
In a statement, Uniswap Foundation head of finance Natalia Ra highlighted 2024 as a “critical inflection point,” noting the Foundation’s strategic focus on ecosystem alignment and long-term sustainability.
“Over the past year, Uniswap Foundation initiatives drove the growth and activation of the Uniswap developer community, accelerating the social and governance infrastructure that sustains them,” Ra said.
While Uniswap Foundation closed 2024 with a larger spend than income, its strong treasury position and clear focus on developer engagement, research, and governance underscore its commitment to fostering the Uniswap protocol and its community.
As the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector matures, the role of non-profit foundations in supporting open-source innovation continues to grow. Uniswap Foundation’s transparent financials reflect both the opportunities and challenges of scaling Web3 infrastructure responsibly.
