Cardano van Rossem hard fork ratified with 68.57% DRep approval

Cardano's van Rossem hard fork was ratified July 13, advancing the network to Protocol Version 11 with 68.57% DRep approval on the Plutus cost model.

The upgrade was coordinated by the Hard Fork Working Group, led by Intersect MBO, with participation from Input Output, the Cardano Foundation and Emurgo, according to the group. Three groups signed off: Delegated Representatives, the Constitutional Committee and Stake Pool Operators.

The governance action was submitted to mainnet on June 16 during Epoch 637, taking roughly four weeks from submission to ratification. Node readiness peaked at approximately 84% by mid-June. The hard fork is named after Max van Rossem, a Cardano community contributor who died in early 2026.

The van Rossem hard fork is designed to lay groundwork for the Dijkstra era, Cardano's next major development phase, which will bring Leios — a scaling solution expected to significantly increase throughput. Enactment is scheduled for July 18.

The upgrade adds new built-in functions to the Plutus smart contract platform and reduces smart contract execution costs, lowering friction for developers building on Cardano. Lower costs could help attract applications that previously found the network too expensive, the Hard Fork Working Group said. The Plutus cost reductions are the most immediate economic change for developers, potentially improving Cardano's competitive position against other L1 networks such as Ethereum and Solana.

An 84% node readiness figure means roughly 16% of nodes were not fully prepared as of mid-June. The 68.57% approval rate on the Plutus cost model shows the system worked but also that a meaningful minority of DReps dissented — a dynamic that could become more consequential on future, more contentious proposals. The approval threshold required sign-off from three groups: DReps, the Constitutional Committee and SPOs, creating multiple checks on any single governance action.

The hard fork is an intra-era change within the Conway ledger era and does not require a separate ledger era transition. It explicitly lays the technical foundation for the Dijkstra era, which will introduce Leios, a scaling solution designed to increase Cardano's transaction throughput. Leios is expected to be the most significant scaling upgrade in Cardano's roadmap.

A blockchain that can upgrade itself through decentralized decision-making is more resilient and adaptable than one dependent on a small group of core developers, the working group said. The governance precedent set by this upgrade could strengthen investor confidence in Cardano's long-term viability. The Voltaire governance framework, now fully operational, allows ADA holders to delegate voting power to DReps who vote on their behalf.

The vote also adds attention to Cardano's Treasury spending and governance processes. A separate proposal from Wirex seeking 3.96 million ADA for a payments project was voted down by a DRep on July 8, citing unclear deliverables and disclosure gaps — illustrating the real-world consequences of the governance system now in place. The Wirex rejection shows that DReps are exercising independent judgment on Treasury withdrawals, a key test of the Voltaire system's credibility.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.