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Cardano’s Charles Hoskinson Outlines Strategic Funding Roadmap for 2026: Here’s What’s New

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Cardano's Charles Hoskinson Outlines Strategic Funding Roadmap for 2026: Here's What's New


Charles Hoskinson speaks about the 2026 funding agenda and how the Cardano ecosystem should evolve going forward.

In a recently released hour-long video, Charles Hoskinson provided considerable insights into how funding for Cardano’s ecosystem will function in 2026. He also pointed out a few pressure points and how the team plans to tackle them.

There’s nothing here that, with the money that we have, Cardano can’t fix. – Said Hoskinson, while outlining critical flaws in existing models.

The Existing Pillars in Cardano’s Funding Focus

Starting off, Hoskinson said that the ecosystem funding model is generally broken down into three layers: infrastructure, utility, and experience. He outlined that historically, Cardano’s funding has been overrepresented within the infrastructure module and underrepresented within the utility and experience modules.

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Infrastructure includes nodes like Ouroboros Leios, Plutus, and Aiken, while utility is what users can do with that infrastructure. This includes building decentralized applications within the broader DeFi ecosystem. Experience, on the other hand, is how users interact with the entire system – through wallets, account abstraction, and on/off ramps.

Hoskinson pointed out that the cost to run and build a node team is about $1 to $5 million per year, requiring between 10 and 40 full-time engineers. He said that the recommended infrastructure to fund includes three already mature node projects – Haskell, Rust, and Go, unified by Project Bluepring plus Hydra, and languages such as Aiken and Plutus.

Funding Utility and Strategic Goals in 2026

Acknowledging that the current state of the Cardano ecosystem is unfavorable (low MAU, TVL, and transaction volume), Hoskinson proposes funding the Utility layer. But this comes with certain conditions, including oversight, OPEX reduction, salary cuts, and alignment with strategic goals.

The idea is to create a weighted index of project tokens, and for the treasury to purchase 10-30% of each project’s total supply in the index.

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Strategic goals for the dApps included in the investment rounds should include Bitcoin DeFi, specifically by using the Pogan protocol, as well as upgrading to be hybrid dApps with Midnight for increased privacy.

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Moreover, a portion of the protocol revenue (example given with 10%) must be used to buy ADA and donate it back to the treasury. With that, these investments are expected to pay for themselves in one to three years as the treasury divests from the appreciating index.

The Experience Layer

Speaking about funding the Experience layer, Hoskinson said it needs funding to rebuild the ambassador and KOL layer, improve user onboarding, and support wallet providers.

He said that the ecosystem needs somewhere between 20 and 30 high-value hackathons each year to improve the developer experience.

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Hoskinson pointed out that in order for the ecosystem to attract external capital, it must be willing to invest in itself. Moreover, he outlined that fragmented and competitive treasury proposals create a “race to the bottom,” while staying firm on the fact that the strategy should be unified.

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Crypto World

February CPI Holds at 2.4% as Oil Shock Complicates Fed Rate Outlook

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Brian Armstrong's Bold Prediction: AI Agents Will Soon Dominate Global Financial

TLDR:

  • February CPI rose 2.4% YoY with core inflation at 2.5%, remaining above the Fed’s 2% target. 
  • Monthly CPI growth slowed slightly, aided by stable vehicle prices and lower rental inflation. 
  • Rising oil prices after the Iran conflict may push March inflation higher than February levels. 
  • Weak payroll growth and higher unemployment complicate the Fed’s March 18 policy decision.

February CPI data showed stable inflation in the United States during February. The figures matched expectations and indicated slower price growth.

However, rising oil prices and weaker employment data now place the Federal Reserve in a difficult position before its March policy meeting.

February CPI Shows Cooling Trend Before Energy Shock

February CPI increased 2.4% compared with the same period last year. The figure matched January’s reading and aligned with market expectations. 

Core inflation also remained steady at 2.5%, still above the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target. Monthly price growth reached 0.3% in February after a 0.2% increase in January.

Core CPI rose 0.2%, slightly lower than the previous month. Lower rental inflation and stable vehicle prices helped keep monthly increases relatively moderate.

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Some consumer categories still experienced rising costs. Grocery prices climbed 0.4% during February and rose 2.4% compared with a year earlier. 

Clothing prices also increased sharply, rising 1.3% during the same month. Energy prices moved higher during February but remained manageable. 

Gasoline prices increased 0.8% during the month yet remained lower than last year’s levels. These numbers represent conditions before the recent geopolitical conflict affected global energy markets.

Bull Theory noted the timing challenge surrounding the data release. The post stated that the Federal Reserve received the “perfect inflation report at the worst possible time.”

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Oil Price Surge and Weak Jobs Data Complicate Fed Decision

Energy markets changed rapidly after the conflict involving Iran began near the end of February. Shipping disruptions in the Persian Gulf pushed oil prices sharply higher within days. 

Energy costs, therefore, started rising after the February CPI measurement period ended.

Oil prices briefly approached $120 per barrel before falling back to near $87. 

The market remains unstable because shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz face ongoing risks. Around 20% of global oil shipments normally pass through this route.

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Fuel prices are already increasing in the United States. The national average price for regular gasoline reached about $3.58 per gallon. 

That represents an increase of roughly 20% within one month. Higher fuel costs often affect transportation, logistics, and airline travel. 

Businesses may also experience higher shipping expenses if energy prices remain elevated. Economists, therefore, expect fuel costs to influence inflation in the next report.

At the same time, labor market data shows signs of slowing. Payroll growth reached only 58,000 jobs in February, far below expectations of 126,000. 

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The unemployment rate also rose to 4.4%. The Bull Theory summarized that policymakers now face three signals: cooling inflation, weakening jobs, and rising energy costs.

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VanEck Crypto ETPs Reach 401(k) Investors via Basic Capital

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VanEck Crypto ETPs Reach 401(k) Investors via Basic Capital

VanEck has made some of its digital asset exchange-traded products (ETPs) available to 401(k) holders in the United States, signaling a push to integrate crypto-focused investments into traditional retirement accounts.

On Wednesday, the fund issuer said a selection of its digital asset ETPs will be offered through Basic Capital, a fintech platform that provides employer-sponsored 401(k) plans.

The companies did not specify which VanEck digital asset ETPs will be available on the platform. Within crypto, VanEck is best known for the VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL) and the VanEck Ethereum Trust (ETHV), its spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The asset manager also offers the VanEck Digital Transformation ETF (DAPP), often referred to as its “Onchain Economy” ETF, which invests in companies involved in the digital asset ecosystem. 

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VanEck expanded its crypto product lineup earlier this year by launching a spot Avalanche ETF in the United States. 

The US Department of Labor in May backtracked on previous federal guidance that discouraged 401(k) plan providers from offering crypto among their investment options.

Source: VanEck

Basic Capital was founded in 2021 and raised $25 million in a Series A funding round last year led by venture capital firms Forerunner and Lux Capital. The company’s 401(k) platform gives investors access to alternative assets beyond traditional stocks and bonds.

Related: Ethereum is very much ‘the Wall Street token,’ VanEck CEO says

Policy shift opens retirement plans to alternative assets

The move comes amid growing regulatory momentum to integrate digital assets into traditional retirement planning.

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In August, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to expand access to alternative assets in 401(k) plans, including digital assets.

The directive called on agencies such as the Treasury Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to coordinate on potential rule changes to support the broader adoption of alternative investments in retirement accounts.

The policy shift comes as more Americans rely on workplace retirement plans to build long-term savings.

Employer-sponsored defined contribution plans held about $13.9 trillion in assets as of September, including roughly $10 trillion in 401(k) plans, according to the Investment Company Institute.

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401(k) plans are grouped under Defined Contribution (DC) plans. Source. Investment Company Institute

Separate data from Vanguard’s “How America Saves 2025” report suggests savings rates are also rising. Nearly half (45%) of participants increased their contribution rates in 2024, reflecting the growing use of automatic contribution features in employer plans.

Related: Crypto’s 2026 investment playbook: Bitcoin, stablecoin infrastructure, tokenized assets