Cardano Turns 8: Why Staking Power Lies in the Hands of Everyday Investors

Cardano (ADA) is drawing attention from investors and the broader crypto community as the blockchain project approaches the eighth anniversary of its launch in 2020. With the Shelley hard fork having established a proof-of-stake (PoS) model, the network has enabled broader participation in staking and delegation, making ADA one of the more accessible PoS assets for everyday holders. This has allowed users to delegate their tokens to stake pools and earn staking rewards without the need for running full nodes.

The Shelley mainnet transition marked a pivotal moment for Cardano, introducing a more decentralized governance model where ADA holders can directly participate in consensus and reward distribution. According to the Cardano Foundation, the process allows users to delegate their ADA through supported wallets like Daedalus, with rewards accruing after a few epochs—each lasting five days. While Yoroi and other wallets have since added similar functionality, Daedalus remains the primary tool for users who want to delegate and monitor their stake immediately after the hard fork.

The community's interest in staking and delegation is reflected in the increased adoption of stake pool services, particularly as ADA holders look to optimize their returns. However, the data also suggests that higher rewards are not always correlated with lower fees. Stake pools with a large amount of delegated ADA may yield higher returns due to their increased likelihood of being selected as slot leaders, despite charging higher operational fees. This highlights the importance of careful pool selection and monitoring for ADA stakers.

As the Cardano blockchain continues to evolve, the ecosystem has also seen efforts to improve wallet security and user control. For example, hardware wallet users can now verify transactions before submitting them to the blockchain, ensuring the integrity of signed transactions and the accuracy of the data being submitted. This functionality is especially relevant for users who rely on Ledger or Trezor devices for staking and transfers, offering an additional layer of security and transparency in transaction handling.

Additionally, recent activity on the Cardano forum has revealed community challenges in accessing and managing ADA, particularly with third-party wallets like Trust Wallet not supporting certain features such as message signing for airdrops. This has led to the adoption of alternative methods, including importing seed phrases into compatible wallets like Eternl, to ensure that users can complete essential actions such as claiming tokens from airdrops.

With the Cardano blockchain entering its eighth year, the focus is shifting toward broader adoption and sustainability. The foundation and core development teams continue to work on scaling solutions and improving interoperability, which may further influence ADA's price dynamics and investor sentiment. While no specific price targets are currently in place, the growing emphasis on staking yields and network participation suggests that ADA remains a compelling asset for long-term holders seeking passive income in a decentralized finance (DeFi) environment.