TL;DR
- Charles Hoskinson denied diverting $600 million in ADA and announced an audit following accusations of manipulating Cardano’s treasury.
- The claims were based on a 2021 transaction involving 318 million ADA, but Hoskinson stated those funds were reclaimed by their rightful owners.
- Tension over the case led Hoskinson to announce changes to how he interacts with the community and manages his social media presence.
Charles Hoskinson found himself at the center of a new controversy within the Cardano ecosystem after being accused of misappropriating $600 million worth of ADA from the network’s treasury.
The accusations, shared by digital artist Masato Alexander, alleged that Hoskinson used a “genesis key” to alter the network’s ledger during the Allegra hard fork in 2021 and redirect $619 million in tokens. The claim was based on a transaction recorded that year, in which more than 318 million ADA were moved from reserves to staking and treasury accounts.
Is There Distrust Within the Cardano Community?
In response, Hoskinson immediately denied the allegations. He explained that ADA redemption remained open for three years after that operation, and that most of the 350 million tokens involved were returned to their original buyers over a seven-year period. The remaining unclaimed balance was eventually allocated to Intersect, an organization linked to Cardano, with Input Output Global (IOG) never taking possession of those funds at any point.
The tension sparked by these claims led the Cardano Foundation to prepare the release of a full audit covering treasury movements from that period. Hoskinson admitted to feeling deeply disappointed by the lack of trust from some community members, especially since — as he pointed out — no solid evidence has been presented to support the accusations.
Hoskinson to Step Back from Managing His Social Media
The Cardano founder also revealed that, once the audit report is published, he will hand over management of his X account to a media team and change the format of his livestreams and open sessions. He believes part of his connection with the community has deteriorated after this incident.
During his appearance at Paris Blockchain Week 2025, Hoskinson also urged the crypto industry to build new models for economic collaboration. He warned that major tech companies are making aggressive moves into blockchain as regulatory clarity improves, and argued that the sector needs to act with greater unity if it wants to remain competitive.
