Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has rejected criticism over receiving ADA before the network launched, arguing that the tokens had no market value at the time and that their subsequent value reflects more than a decade of development around Cardano.
During his Nov. 7 surprise AMA, a viewer challenged Hoskinson over his early ADA allocation and questioned whether he continues profiting from staking holdings that were originally received without purchasing them on the open market.
Hoskinson responded directly: “I built Cardano. It was worth zero when I got it.” He argued that ADA had no established market or ecosystem when the allocation occurred.
ADA currently trades around $0.174, with a market capitalization near $6.42 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Hoskinson Points to Ouroboros, EUTXO and Plutus
Hoskinson said the relevant question is what ADA would have been worth without the years of work that followed its creation.
He specifically pointed to the development of Ouroboros, Cardano’s proof-of-stake consensus family; the extended UTXO model underlying Cardano’s accounting architecture; and Plutus, its smart-contract platform.
He also highlighted years spent building the wider ecosystem, recruiting researchers and developers, establishing academic partnerships and regularly engaging with the Cardano community.
The argument follows similar comments from Hoskinson in recent months. He previously defended Cardano’s progress after criticism over liquidity and network usage, pointing to RealFi, Midnight and infrastructure integrations as evidence that development continues.
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During his Nov. 7 surprise AMA, a viewer challenged Hoskinson over his early ADA allocation and questioned whether he continues profiting from staking holdings that were originally received without purchasing them on the open market.
Hoskinson responded directly: “I built Cardano. It was worth zero when I got it.” He argued that ADA had no established market or ecosystem when the allocation occurred.
ADA currently trades around $0.174, with a market capitalization near $6.42 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Hoskinson Points to Ouroboros, EUTXO and Plutus
Hoskinson said the relevant question is what ADA would have been worth without the years of work that followed its creation.
He specifically pointed to the development of Ouroboros, Cardano’s proof-of-stake consensus family; the extended UTXO model underlying Cardano’s accounting architecture; and Plutus, its smart-contract platform.
He also highlighted years spent building the wider ecosystem, recruiting researchers and developers, establishing academic partnerships and regularly engaging with the Cardano community.
The argument follows similar comments from Hoskinson in recent months. He previously defended Cardano’s progress after criticism over liquidity and network usage, pointing to RealFi, Midnight and infrastructure integrations as evidence that development continues.
#CryptoNews🚀🔥V