AI · CoinDesk
Inside Cardano's 'Van Rossum' hard fork, and what it means for users
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Cardano activated its Van Rossem hard fork on Saturday, moving the mainnet to protocol version 11.
Key facts
- CEX trading volumes rose for the first time in five months in June, with spot climbing 15.3% to $1.11T and RWA perpetual volumes surging to a record $311B
- Onchain data from Cardanoscan shows the network moved from version 10 in epoch 643 to version 11 in epoch 644, with the action enacted activated Saturday, July 18 at 21:44 UTC after ratification
- Delegated representatives, or stakeholders that ADA holders elect to vote on governance proposals on their behalf, similar to representatives in a parliament, voted 78.97% in favor against a 60%
- Cardano activated its Van Rossem hard fork on Saturday, moving the mainnet to protocol version 11
Summary
Cardano’s Van Rossem hard fork activated on July 18, moving the network to protocol version 11 and lowering smart contract execution costs while preparing for a future scalability upgrade. The upgrade is the first in Cardano’s history to be proposed, debated and ratified entirely through its onchain governance system, rather than by founding developer Input Output, marking a shift in who controls protocol changes. While everyday ADA transactions remain unchanged for now, the fork enables cheaper, more capable smart contracts and lays procedural and technical groundwork for the planned Ouroboros Leios scaling upgrade expected in 2026. Every previous Cardano hard fork was coordinated top-down by the network’s founding entities, chiefly Input Output, but Van Rossem was initiated, debated and ratified entirely through Cardano's onchain governance system, the framework introduced in the so-dubbed Voltaire era that lets stakeholders vote directly on protocol changes.