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

The company behind the Cardano blockchain, Input Output, is seeking a substantially lower amount of funding from the project's community treasury this year. The nine proposals, totaling $46.8 million, were submitted for the 2026 voting cycle and focus on scaling the Cardano network to increase its transaction capacity and expanding into Bitcoin DeFi. This reduced funding request marks the first step in a plan to reduce Input Output's reliance on community funds. The company aims to decrease its annual funding requests until it can sustain itself through its own revenue, allowing community funds to support a broader range of smaller engineering groups. By the end of 2026, Input Output expects smaller teams to take on most of its current in-house work. The proposals are divided into two main themes: scaling and Bitcoin DeFi. The larger funds will be allocated to a consensus upgrade called Leios, which is expected to increase Cardano's transaction processing capacity by 10 to 65 times. The second flagship proposal funds a system called Pogun, which aims to bring Bitcoin-based decentralized finance to Cardano. Smaller proposals cover performance improvements, security testing, and expanded API services. Each proposal has specific delivery leads and ties funding to delivery milestones. Voting opens on Tuesday and will run through May 24, with roughly 1,000 elected delegates making the decisions. The outcome of the vote will test whether Cardano's governance treats Input Output like any other grant applicant or continues to approve its requests based on deference. Meanwhile, Input Output has cited progress in the ecosystem, including the launch of a new Cardano stablecoin, USDCx, and an increase in total assets deposited on the network.