Cardano Community Approves $71M Treasury Funding for 2025 Upgrades

Cardano’s development team, Input Output Global (IOG), has secured approval from the community to receive 96 million ADA—approximately $71 million—to support a year-long series of network upgrades. The proposal was approved with a 74% approval rate, receiving 200 votes in favor, six against, and seven abstentions. This marks the first time the Cardano community directly approved treasury funding for core development [1].

The funding will be disbursed in stages and is tied to specific delivery milestones overseen by Intersect, a governance body within the Cardano ecosystem. IOG will be required to submit monthly progress reports, detailed timesheets, and quarterly budget breakdowns. Additional oversight will be provided through smart contracts and a dedicated committee to ensure accountability [1].

Key upgrades include improvements to Hydra, Cardano’s scalability protocol designed to enable high-speed, low-cost transactions. Project Acropolis aims to redesign the Cardano node to make it more modular and developer-friendly, which is seen as essential for attracting new contributors. IOG also plans to implement performance improvements to reduce RAM usage and operating costs for stake pool operators, while laying the foundation for more advanced smart contract capabilities and interoperability with other blockchains [1].

Currently, Cardano processes blocks in an average of 20 seconds, with a transaction cost of around 0.34 ADA, according to blockchain analytics firm Messari [1]. The proposed upgrades are expected to enhance the network’s scalability, reduce costs, and improve overall efficiency, making it more competitive in the blockchain industry.

Despite the approval, the proposal drew some scrutiny. Concerns were raised about the size of the funding request and the lack of transparency regarding resource allocation. Some community members questioned whether the proposal should have been broken into smaller, separately voted sections. A competing proposal from Cardano’s Technical Steering Committee was submitted but not endorsed by Intersect [1].

Intersect board member Adam Rusch emphasized that the decision ultimately rested with the Cardano community, noting the complexity of the situation and the importance of community governance [1].

Cardano joins other major blockchain networks launching significant upgrades in 2025. Solana recently increased its block capacity by 20%, while Ethereum raised its gas limit and executed the Pectra hard fork in May, with further updates planned for the year. These developments reflect a broader industry trend toward enhancing scalability, performance, and developer tools [1].

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has also been addressing scrutiny surrounding IOG’s ADA holdings. An audit of IOG’s ADA balance is nearing completion and is expected to be publicly released, with plans to livestream the full report once finalized [1]. This follows earlier accusations, including claims that Hoskinson misappropriated $600 million in ADA through ledger manipulation. Hoskinson has denied these allegations.

Source: [1] Cardano Team Secures $71M Approval to Advance Network Upgrades (https://cryptonews.com/news/cardano-team-secures-71m-approval-to-advance-network/)