Cardano Developer Seeks Reduced Funding of $46.8 Million for Expansion and DeFi Integration

The company behind the Cardano blockchain, Input Output, is seeking a substantially lower amount of funding from the project's community treasury, marking a crucial step towards reducing its dependence on community funds. The submitted proposals, totaling $46.8 million, focus on enhancing the blockchain's scalability and exploring Bitcoin-based decentralized finance opportunities. This reduction in funding request is part of a strategic plan to gradually decrease Input Output's reliance on community funds, aiming to sustain itself through its own revenue. By the end of 2026, the company expects smaller, specialized teams to undertake a significant portion of its current in-house work. The proposals are divided into two primary themes: enhancing the blockchain's transaction processing capacity through the Leios consensus upgrade, which aims to increase throughput by 10 to 65 times, and introducing a system called Pogun, designed to facilitate Bitcoin-based DeFi on Cardano. Smaller proposals address performance improvements, security testing, and expanded API services. Each proposal is tied to specific delivery milestones, ensuring that funding is released in stages based on the completion of project components. The voting process, which opened on Tuesday and will run through May 24, will be decided by approximately 1,000 elected delegates representing ADA holders. The outcome of the vote will be a significant test of Cardano's governance, determining whether the community treats Input Output as any other grant applicant or continues to approve its proposals based on established relationships.