Aave founder Stani Kulechov bought a mansion worth £22 million (about $30 million) in London’s Notting Hill district. This transaction stands out as one of the most expensive home sales in the luxury housing market last year.
Big Buy in London’s Luxury Housing Market
According to official property records, the purchase was completed in November. The transaction took place days before the UK government announced its new budget. This acquisition, which was closed with a discount of approximately 2 million pounds compared to the previous price information of real estate brokerage companies, is interpreted as a reflection of the recently weakened London luxury housing market.
The five-storey Victorian house purchased has sweeping views in one of Notting Hill’s popular areas. The sale took place during a period of decreasing transaction volume due to high taxes imposed on foreign investors in recent years and the decline in housing demand.
According to data from property research company LonRes, sales of homes worth more than £5 million in 2025 decreased significantly – by as much as 40 percent – compared to the previous year. Experts also share the view that additional tax changes in the coming periods may further limit the demand for premium real estate.
Who is Stani Kulechov and the Growth of Aave
Born in Estonia and raised in Finland, Stani Kulechov founded the decentralized finance platform Aave in 2017. Today, Aave is considered one of the industry’s leading names as one of the largest DeFi lending platforms in terms of total locked asset size.
Kulechov is also the CEO of the parent company Avara. Idler; It is developing several projects including the social network Lens Protocol, the GHO stablecoin, and a digital wallet called Family. With this developing ecosystem, Kulechov is known as an influential figure in the crypto asset industry.
Kulechov’s statement about the purchase, “The purchased property is in Notting Hill, one of the most popular areas of London, and has a five-storey structure,” stands out in the industry.
Governance Discussions and Latest Developments in Aave
In December, Stani Kulechov’s purchase of nearly $10 million worth of AAVE tokens ahead of a key governance vote came under criticism again. Allegations that this transaction was made to increase voting power led to discussions on the platform.
Similarly, in the governance proposals regarding brand and asset control in the Aave ecosystem, some stakeholders stated that they were uncomfortable with the unilateral conduct of the processes. Additionally, some participants expressed the view that product decisions and fee changes favor private companies rather than the DAO.
“It is concerning that the largest wallets have more than half the voting power,” some contributors in the Aave community commented.
In mid-December, Stani Kulechov announced that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had completed its long-running review of the Aave protocol without any sanctions. Additionally, Aave Labs has reportedly received MiCA authorization in Europe and is making preparations for the Aave V4 release.
