SEI Governance Model: How Decisions Are Made

SEI uses a decentralized, on-chain governance model where SEI token holders, validators, and ecosystem stakeholders vote to shape protocol upgrades, economic parameters, treasury allocations, and long-term network development.

The governance system is built to be transparent, participatory, and secure — ensuring SEI evolves in alignment with the community while maintaining high-performance stability.

What Is SEI Governance?

SEI governance is the decentralized decision-making system that determines:

• protocol upgrades

• parameter changes

• staking economics

• treasury spending

• community proposals

• ecosystem development initiatives

Governance ensures that SEI evolves in a transparent, community-driven way.

Who Participates in SEI Governance?

1. SEI Token Holders (Delegators)

Anyone who holds and stakes SEI can:

• vote directly

• or delegate voting power to a validator

They control the majority of governance power.

2. Validators

Validators:

• vote on proposals

• represent delegated stake

• implement changes when proposals pass

They play a critical operational role in governance.

3. Developers / Core Contributors

Developers can:

• create improvement proposals

• implement upgrades after votes pass

• steward technical development

4. The SEI Foundation / Ecosystem Funding Organizations

These groups can:

• submit proposals

• deploy treasury funds

• coordinate large upgrades

They do not override community voting power.

Types of Governance Proposals

SEI supports multiple classes of proposals.

1. Parameter Change Proposals

Modify protocol variables such as:

• staking rewards

• slashing parameters

• gas pricing models

• inflation settings

• block size or gas limits

These do not require code upgrades.

2. Software Upgrade Proposals

Used for:

• hard forks

• SEI VM updates

• consensus optimizations

• new modules

Once approved, validators automatically download and apply the upgrade.

3. Community & Treasury Proposals

Decide how to use SEI’s community funds for:

• grants

• liquidity programs

• developer incentives

• partnerships

• hackathons

These proposals shape ecosystem growth.

4. Governance Process Changes

Meta-governance proposals that modify:

• voting rules

• thresholds

• proposal submission requirements

They ensure long-term governance flexibility.

How the SEI Governance Process Works

The SEI governance workflow follows a clear on-chain lifecycle.

Step 1 — Proposal Submission

Any user meeting the minimum deposit requirement can submit a proposal.
This prevents spam while keeping governance open.

Deposits are refunded if the proposal enters voting.

Step 2 — Deposit Period

The proposal collects enough SEI to move into the voting phase.

If it doesn’t reach the deposit threshold, it fails automatically.

Step 3 — Voting Period

Validators and delegators vote using four options:

• Yes

• No

• No with Veto (used for malicious proposals)

• Abstain

Voting power is proportional to staked SEI.

Delegators may override their validator’s vote if they choose.

Step 4 — Quorum & Threshold Checks

For a proposal to pass:

• Quorum must be met (minimum % of total staked SEI participating)

• The “Yes” vote must exceed the required threshold

• “No with veto” must stay below the veto threshold

These protections prevent takeover attacks.

Step 5 — Proposal Execution

If approved:

• Parameter changes are applied automatically

• Software upgrades require validators to update nodes (coordinated timeline)

• Treasury proposals trigger the appropriate fund movements

Execution is transparent and enforced on-chain.

What Makes SEI Governance Unique?

1. High Performance + On-Chain Upgrades

SEI’s governance model supports live, rapid protocol upgrades while maintaining:

• sub-second finality

• high throughput

• parallel execution lanes

Governance is tightly integrated with SEI’s performance architecture.

2. Stake-Weighted + Validator-Layer Enforcement

Validators enforce:

• proposal execution

• chain upgrades

• consensus rule changes

Their incentives align with network health.

3. Developer-Friendly Governance

SEI’s architecture eases:

• EVM upgrades

• WASM/EVM hybrid logic

• performance module changes

Governance can evolve SEI without breaking existing applications.

4. Long-Term Sustainability

Treasury and emissions governance ensures:

• healthy staking yields

• ecosystem growth

• controlled inflation

• responsible token unlocks

Stakeholders vote to ensure SEI stays economically stable.

Why Governance Matters for SEI’s Future

For Developers

• Predictable upgrade cycles

• Transparent roadmap

• Ability to fund projects via proposals

For Validators

• Influence over technical upgrades

• Alignment with community priorities

For Delegators

• Direct impact on staking rewards, inflation & economics

• Power to veto malicious proposals

For the Ecosystem

• Long-term decentralization

• Community control over treasury funds

• Trust and resilience

Conclusion

SEI’s governance model is built for transparency, decentralization, and long-term sustainability.
With stake-weighted voting, structured proposal processes, treasury oversight, and full on-chain execution, SEI empowers its community to shape the network’s evolution — from economic parameters to major protocol upgrades.

On SEI, governance isn’t an add-on — it is the core mechanism that ensures the blockchain evolves responsibly and efficiently.