As Cardano gears up for the Chang hard fork scheduled for August 27, excitement and anticipation fill the crypto community. The update pushes Cardano into the 'Voltaire era,' marking a major step toward fully decentralized community governance.
Charles Hoskinson, the co-founder of Cardano, has emphasized the upgrade's transformative potential. It introduces voting mechanisms, allowing the community to directly influence the network’s future direction.
Named after Phil Chang, a notable figure in early Cardano governance, the Chang hard fork will enable advanced participation mechanisms. These include delegating votes and withdrawals from the community treasury, invigorating the ecosystem and promoting innovation.
Currently, Cardano (ADA) is neck and neck with Tron (TRX) to reclaim its position among the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. This competition intensified after Cardano briefly fell out of the top ten on August 20, 2024, due to Tron’s valuation surge driven by its new meme coin launch platform, SunPump.
Despite a recent 6% price drop for Tron, Cardano has seen a 4% rise, bringing its market cap to $13.16 billion, closely trailing Tron’s $13.40 billion. Observers noted that ADA momentarily eclipsed TRX in market cap earlier today, although it could not sustain its lead.
Preparations for the Chang hard fork are advancing, with over 14 crypto exchanges, including Coinbase, ready for the update. Others, like Binance, are nearing readiness, though 23 exchanges have yet to start preparations. The network transition depends on 70% of the participation pool operators updating their nodes to version 9.0.
However, Cardano continues to receive criticism for the slow price momentum of ADA. The token has fallen nearly 38% year-to-date, down substantially from its all-time highs. Yet, Cardano's supporters remain optimistic about the future and the upcoming hard fork.
The Cardano community is poised for a new chapter, promising technological advancements and a strengthened democratic ethos in the ecosystem.
