GM, Balancer Fam!
First, thank you to everyone who joined us in Bangkok – we had some nice activations. A big thank you as well to those who couldn’t make it but supported us in other ways.
I’m pleased to share how productive the discussions around V3 have been. The meetings were focused and delivered solid outputs. With multiple tech teams coordinating together in the same room, we have achieved tangible progress to launch v3, setting the stage for the next steps.
We managed to squeeze in a few more contributors in our budget, assisting with costs in one way or another. In the end, the Balancer delegation had 24 people in total and our presence was well noticed around the venue and in many side-events!
Moreover, the side event with Certora and CoWDAO organized by our marketing team was a highlight — more than 200 attendees appreciated not only the welcoming atmosphere but also the opportunity to engage directly with our developers. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, and it was great to see such meaningful connections being made.
Attendees:
- Balancer Labs: 10 (6 participants were funded by BLabs)
- Balancer OpCo: 4
- Maxis: 5
- Beets: 3
- Grants: 1
- Karpatkey: 1 (1 participant funded by Kptk)
Activations:
- [Balancer ONsite Activity]: A day dedicated to internal team activities, including mindfulness, physical exercises and fostering team connection.
- [Devcon and side-events]: Four days of events where much of the team engaged with attendees, representing Balancer within the ecosystem.
- [Sessions at the Co-working Space]: Technical discussions around V3, marketing strategies, and V3 launch plans.
Pre & Post-Retreat Engagement
Pre-Retreat Virtual Events and Groupchats: We managed communications through Slack and Telegram dedicated groups, where contributors could engage in friendly conversations, share side-event invitations and plan ahead for the trip. This also facilitated official communication to coordinate agenda and align expectations.
Post-Retreat Follow-Up: A questionnaire was sent to all participants, collecting valuable information for following meetups. 92% of respondents said they are “very likely” to join the crew for another ONsite edition.
“You really outdid yourselves this time! Everything was wonderful - just the right level of challenge, and extremely interesting and culturally relevant to the location. Work sessions were also very productive, and not too long.”
See more quotes below.
Expected Outcomes
Best way to illustrate the achievement of these ONsites is by hearing from the contributors themselves!
Improved Team Cohesion & Morale: Stronger relationships and a greater sense of belonging.
“Team activities like the ice bath can’t be replaced - doing crazy stuff like that definitely builds bonds.”
“Just how committed and stoked everyone is to be a part of Balancer.”
Enhanced Collaboration & Productivity: Increased cross-functional communication and knowledge sharing, leading to innovative solutions and improved workflows.
“These events motivated me and made me feel like I’m part of a great team, and V3 is in the right direction (Especially with ZenDragon’s talk about partners and how everybody is excited to interact with V3 somehow)”
“I enjoyed both quite a bit. They are good for team building and to know what everyone else is up to, and also discuss improvements and necessities from each team.”
“I got a lot of energy out of Zen’s talk. I really wasn’t aware of how much interest we had in boosted pools etc.”
Reinforced Web3 Culture: Deeper understanding of Ethereum ecosystem and alignment with our values, fostering a positive and engaged workforce.
“First thing: it was nice to see how big the Ethereum ecosystem is, and how strong Balancer is in this ecosystem. It was great to meet Balancer partners in person, auditors, integrators, a lot of new people approached to talk about some solution, so it was cool.”
“There is a lot being worked on outside of DeFi that is inspiring and creates a sense that the industry is really only getting just started.”
Increased Motivation & Retention: A sense of appreciation and investment in contributor growth, leading to higher motivation and loyalty.
“Its fun to have fun and great for morale. Regarding the work sessions is great to be present with the team irl and thrive from that motivation.”
“We need more coworking/cross pollination/internal presentations/workshops/discussions irl”
“Glad we still had time to do this. I thought it ended up being more impactful than Devcon itself which I didn’t expect.”
Event Budget vs. Actuals Summary
This edition was planned a bit late. We spent a lot on flights (as expected) and ended up doing way more activities than we anticipated, also renting a coworking space for the meetings and sessions, which wasn’t in the original plan. Many SPs chipped in and paid some travel expenses from their own pockets, enabling us to assist mote Balancer contributors to join as well, hence the initial allocation for 14 people turned out to be a considerable delegation of 24.
In addition, we invited partners to join in activities with the Balancer crew, including Certora, CoWDAO, QuantAMM and Aura. Big shout out to @JediRasta26 and @naly for sourcing amazing venues for our work sessions and group activities!
| Category | Budget | Actuals | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | $ 17,800.00 | $ 17,390.08 | ($ 409.92) |
| Accommodations | $ 14,400.00 | $ 8,796.45 | ($ 5,603.55) |
| Event tickets | $ 5,962.00 | $ 4.897.00 | ($ 1,065.00) |
| Meals and per diems | $ 4,800.00 | $ 5.099.64 | $ 299.64 |
| Activities | $ 2,800.00 | $ 3,447.43 | $ 647.43 |
| Meeting room rental | $ 0.00 | $ 2,741.19 | $ 2,741.19 |
| Total | $45,762.00 | $42,371.79 | ($3.390.21) |
Final cost per person: $ 2,693.29 USD (17pax, not considering BLabs, Karpatkey and partners attending activities
Surplus: $ 3.390,21 USD (currently held at Balancer OpCo Limited).
Marketing budget
From [BIP-612] our initial marketing allocation of $45,750 included plans for social events at Devcon. After spendings at EthCC ($17,156.66) the budget was $ 28.593,34.
Initially, planning for a marketing-focused presence, the approach expanded to combining in-person marketing with an active ONsite team presence. This blend not only strengthened the external relationships and brand image but also brought personal fulfillment and motivation to everyone involved.
See full marketing recap here.
| Category | Actuals |
|---|---|
| Event venue (rental, food and beverage) | $ 2,564.75 |
| Merch, swag, design | $ 5,121.51 |
| Videographer | $ 3.340,00 |
| Travel costs, sourcing (including ONsite) | $ 2,184.69 |
| Total | $ 13,210.95 |
Surplus: $ 15,380,39 USD (currently held at Balancer OpCo Limited).
Final remarks
Thank you once again to everyone who participated and engaged throughout this meetup!
We expect to drop another proposal shortly to secure these funds for more irl events, ETHDenver being in everyone’s sight atm. As for next Ecosystem ONsites, we began the ideation phase for another edition in Brazil (
Q2/2025), taking advantage of the favorable exchange rate. Again, planning ahead (and early) will be the key, so we should also present that proposal to governance fairly soon.
Cheers!