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

Input Output, the company responsible for building and maintaining the Cardano blockchain, has submitted nine proposals totaling $46.8 million for the 2026 funding cycle. This amount is roughly half of the $97.5 million requested in 2025. The proposals focus on enhancing Cardano's scalability and exploring Bitcoin DeFi opportunities. Cardano's community treasury, funded by network fees, is allocated through a voting process. Historically, Input Output has been the primary recipient of these funds due to its significant role in the blockchain's development. However, the company now aims to reduce its reliance on community funding by decreasing its annual requests until it can sustain itself through its own revenue. The proposals are divided into two main categories. The first involves a consensus upgrade called Leios, which is expected to increase Cardano's transaction processing capacity by 10 to 65 times. This upgrade is scheduled for a test release in June and full deployment by the end of the year. The second flagship proposal involves a system called Pogun, designed to integrate Bitcoin-based decentralized finance into Cardano. This system would allow Bitcoin holders to borrow and earn yield on their holdings without relying on centralized intermediaries. Other proposals focus on improving the performance of Cardano's smart contract engine, enhancing security testing infrastructure, and expanding API services. Each proposal is tied to specific delivery milestones, ensuring that funding is released in stages as different components are completed. Voting on these proposals is set to begin and will be decided by approximately 1,000 elected delegates representing ADA holders. The outcome of this vote will indicate whether Cardano's governance treats Input Output as any other grant applicant or continues to approve its requests based on precedent. The Cardano ecosystem has shown progress, with a new stablecoin, USDCx, reaching 14.6 million tokens in circulation shortly after its launch. The total assets deposited on Cardano have also increased from $137.5 million to $142.7 million. The vote's outcome will signal the Cardano community's shift in thinking regarding development funding and Input Output's role in the ecosystem.