Cardano’s Chang Hard Fork Boosts ZK-Scaling Leadership Amid ADA Price Drop

Key Takeaways:

• Cardano’s Governance Transition: The Chang hard fork marks Cardano’s shift to the Voltaire era, focusing on decentralized governance after completing the Basho phase.
• Chang Hard Fork Progress: Approximately 52.82% of Cardano blocks are minted by upgraded Stake Pool Operators, with the transition’s full readiness still in progress.
• ZK-Scaling Dominance: The Chang hard fork is expected to propel Cardano to the forefront of the ZK-scaling race, enhancing its competitive edge.
• Technical Enhancements: Post-Chang, Cardano will integrate Plutus v2, which supports advanced smart contracts and lays the groundwork for high-speed ZK rollups.
• ADA Price Decline: Despite these promising developments, Cardano’s native ADA token has seen a significant price drop, settling at $0.34 as of August 2024.

Cardano has officially announced its transition to the Voltaire era after completing the Basho phase, a move that will be facilitated by the much-anticipated Chang hard fork. With 33% of the network’s stake pool operators (SPOs) and 14% of supporting exchanges already prepared, the network is progressing towards full readiness. The hard fork will introduce decentralized governance features, significantly bolstering Cardano’s capabilities in ZK (zero-knowledge) scaling.

Read On: Cardano (ADA) Price Prediction

According to Cardanoscan, 31.97% of exchanges are liquidity-ready, while 80.90% of stake pools are stake-ready, with 52.82% of blocks already minted by SPOs that have upgraded to support the hard fork. Cardano’s founder, Charles Hoskinson, emphasized that the blockchain would need 70% of SPOs to install the new node before the hard fork is activated, pushing Cardano into the Voltaire era.

Cardano should lean into ZK scaling more than Input Endorsers as it’s attainable right after the Chang hard fork. These deterministic properties cannot be replicated by other networks, even UTxO ones like Bitcoin, Ergo, or Radix. #Cardano $ADA @phil_uplc @cwpaulm https://t.co/TaZNUM9RjG pic.twitter.com/y3MigdBQRr

— St₳ke with Pride 🌈 SPO & DRep (@StakeWithPride) April 11, 2024

Phil, a Cardano enthusiast, highlighted that Cardano’s ability to smoothly transition between versions without splitting the blockchain is due to its unique hard fork combinator (HFC). This allows the network to switch to new protocols without disrupting operations, ensuring stability and continuity.

The Chang hard fork is expected to propel Cardano to the forefront of the ZK-scaling race, according to Philip DiSarro, CEO of Anastasia Labs. Post-fork, Cardano will integrate Plutus v2, enabling developers to efficiently create and launch smart contracts, further enhancing the network’s capabilities in handling complex computations essential for ZK rollups.

Despite these promising developments, ADA, Cardano’s native token, has faced significant price declines, dropping 60% since March 2024 to settle at $0.34 in August. The decline highlights the ongoing market challenges despite the network’s technological advancements.

As Cardano prepares for the Voltaire era and ZK-scaling dominance, the Chang hard fork is set to be a pivotal moment for the blockchain, offering new opportunities for decentralized governance and scaling solutions. However, the ADA token’s price movement will be closely watched as these developments unfold.

Source: Cryptopolitan