Cardano's Plomin: ADA Holders Gain On-Chain Governance

Cardano's Plomin Hard Fork Brings On-Chain Governance

Cardano, a layer-1 blockchain launched in 2017 by Ethereum co-founder Charles Hoskinson, activated its highly anticipated "Plomin" upgrade on Wednesday. This upgrade marks a significant milestone for the Cardano ecosystem, as it introduces on-chain governance, allowing ADA token holders to shape the future of the network.

The Plomin upgrade enables ADA token holders to vote on treasury measures and hard forks, giving them a direct say in the development of the Cardano blockchain. This move towards decentralized governance is a testament to Cardano's commitment to community involvement and democratic decision-making.

The upgrade comes just four months after Cardano implemented the "Chang" hard fork, which laid the groundwork for the mechanisms now in effect. The biggest change brought by Plomin is the full implementation of Delegate Representatives (dReps), who will vote on governance issues on behalf of ADA token holders. This shift in governance structure empowers the Cardano community and ensures that the network's evolution reflects the collective will of its stakeholders.

In preparation for the Plomin upgrade, stake pool operators needed to upgrade their nodes and approve the upgrade with a 51% vote. As of this week, roughly 85% of nodes were with the new version, allowing the network to proceed with the changes. The Cardano community is already tackling a series of new issues to implement, with a focus on making the network faster, adding privacy-preserving features, and increasing developer utility.

Cardano's Plomin Hard Fork: A New Era of Decentralized Governance

The Cardano blockchain is set to transition to a decentralized governance structure after the Plomin hard fork takes effect. This upgrade introduces multiple critical changes to Cardano's governance and functionality, enabling all seven governance actions outlined in the Cardano Improvement Proposal CIP-1694. These actions include treasury withdrawals, new constitution proposals, and votes of no confidence.

The Plomin hard fork also activates decentralized representative (DRep) and stake pool operator (SPO) voting on applicable governance actions. This shift in governance structure empowers ADA token holders, granting them real voting power over key network decisions, including parameter adjustments, treasury withdrawals, and hard fork initiations.

The Cardano Foundation