OnchainCore Infrastructureonchain
IO: Cardano Upgrades
Input Output (IO) & Ensurable Systems
Three platform upgrades: (1) CIP-159 Account Address Enhancement — enables micro-fee collection (lifts minUTxOValue restriction), L2 reserves, fixed-supply token minting, Phase 1 targeting Dijkstra era; (2) CPS-23 Multi-Asset Treasury CIP — design work enabling Cardano Treasury to hold stablecoins and native assets alongside ADA; (3) Babel Fees — users pay transaction fees in any native asset (USDC, bridged BTC) via Nested Transactions (CIP-118), with Lace Wallet integration, MVP Feb 2027.
Ask (ADA)
13,103,039
Ask (USD)
$3,144,729
Peg
$0.24
Eff. ADA @ spot
11,884,841
Peg vs market
✓ conservative
Scorecard
13 of 19 criteria answered
Amber · 91%· pending review
How this score works
Each criterion is worth between 1 and 4 points. The score is the points earned out of the points on criteria that have been answered — shown as a percentage. Green is 75% or higher, Amber is 50–74%, and Red is below 50%.
Some criteria are checked automatically against the proposal data (open source, doxxed team, treasury return clauses, etc.). Others are human-judgment calls — value for money, public good, whether the deliverables are realistic. Those stay blank until a DRep ticks them.
Criteria can also be marked Not applicablewhen they don't fit the proposal — for example, "open source" doesn't apply to a DAO governance proposal with no software output. Those are excluded from the score entirely, neither helping nor hurting.
Green requires 80% coverage. If less than 80% of the applicable criteria (by points) have been answered, the verdict stays at Amber — "pending review" — even when every answered criterion passes. This proposal's coverage is currently 68% (13 of 19 applicable criteria answered). The auto-calculated band would have been Green, but coverage is below the threshold so the verdict is shown as Amber to flag that judgment criteria are still pending.
Vote intent
Export & audit
↓ Download scorecard.mdRaw payload · Treasury (true) / Admin (intersect)
{
"schema_version": "1.2.0",
"id": "onchain-io-cardano-upgrades",
"ingestion": {
"ingested_at": "2026-05-11T16:20:00Z",
"ingested_by": "claude-opus-4.7",
"source_documents": [
"https://www.cardanocube.com/governance/gov_actions/gov_action1w0shrfxqwv95kk0v4cn34wylz25a2cmqkq5jpc0e2yrahhqava3qz6es0cp",
"https://ipnso-com.ipns.dweb.link/?cid=QmXD6eoaFWrRoubFfvB2vSmLGbhVa66DbM9xw2dH1htRYK"
],
"extraction_notes": "IO 2026 portfolio (tx #1). Highest Yes in IO batch (550.83M) — DReps appear much more positive about protocol upgrades than pure research/maintenance. Babel Fees is the 2030-Strategy-visible feature. Co-delivery with Ensurable Systems again (same as Maintenance Initiative). WS1 CIP-159 depends on Dijkstra hard fork (separate governance action). WS3 Babel Fees depends on Nested Transactions CIP-118 being on testnet (flagged Medium/High risk). Duration ~12 months (Q3 2026 – Q2 2027). CV26 explicitly scoped OUT 'Babel Fees, including Nested Transactions CIP-118 framework, wallet integrations, routing, and production MVP roadmap' — confirming this is that excluded scope."
},
"source": {
"channels": [
"onchain"
],
"hydra_id": null,
"onchain_tx_hash": "73e171a4c0730b4b59ecae271ab89f12a9d56360b02920e1f95107dbdc1d6762",
"onchain_action_id": "gov_action1w0shrfxqwv95kk0v4cn34wylz25a2cmqkq5jpc0e2yrahhqava3qz6es0cp"
},
"identity": {
"title": "IO: Cardano Upgrades",
"proposer_name": "Input Output (IO) & Ensurable Systems",
"proposer_id": "io-research",
"proposer_type": "coalition",
"proposer_url": "https://www.iog.io",
"doxxed": true,
"primary_contact": null,
"team_size_disclosed": null,
"team_size_disclosed_note": "WS1 (CIP-159): Ledger engineers + Plutus integration + conformance testing. WS2 (Multi-Asset Treasury): Ledger architects. WS3 (Babel Fees): Technical Lead/Architect + Cardano protocol engineers. Ensurable Systems again as specialist partner."
},
"classification": {
"official_pillar_primary": [
"Adoption & Utility",
"Ecosystem Sustainability & Resilience"
],
"official_pillar_secondary": [
"Infrastructure & Research Excellence",
"Governance",
"Community & Ecosystem Growth"
],
"official_pillar_confidence": "stated",
"working_category_suggestion": "Core Infrastructure",
"working_category_confidence": "high",
"tags": [
"cip-159",
"account-address",
"micro-fees",
"babel-fees",
"multi-asset-treasury",
"cip-118",
"nested-transactions",
"ledger",
"dijkstra",
"lace-wallet",
"spо-revenue",
"stablecoins",
"usdc"
]
},
"ask": {
"ada_amount": 13103039,
"ada_amount_note": "WS1 CIP-159 Micro Fees ₳7,069,985 (54%), WS2 Multi-Asset Treasury ₳2,356,662 (18%), WS3 Babel Fees ₳3,676,392 (28%). Budget: Development ₳11,268,614 (86%), Engagement ₳786,182 (6%), Operations ₳393,091 (3%), remainder 1% each.",
"usd_amount": 3144729,
"usd_peg_price": 0.24,
"pegged": true,
"currency_basis": "usd_pegged",
"usd_peg_vs_market": "conservative",
"implied_buffer_pct": -8,
"duration_months": 12,
"milestone_count": 11,
"milestone_payments_disclosed": false,
"milestone_schedule_disclosed": "names_only",
"raw_ask_text": "Total Treasury Ask: ₳13,103,039. USD figures ($3,144,729) are provided for reference only, based on an ADA/USD rate of 0.24. WS1 Micro Fees: ₳7,069,985. WS2 Multi Asset Treasury: ₳2,356,662. WS3 Babel Fees: ₳3,676,392."
},
"treasury_return": {
"has_return_clause": true,
"mechanisms": [
{
"type": "unspent_funds",
"trigger": "Funds undisbursed at end of delivery period OR partial delivery / scope reduction",
"deadline": "End of delivery period (Q2 2027)",
"excluded_costs": [],
"estimated_return_pct": null,
"estimated_return_pct_note": "Proportional to undelivered scope"
}
],
"treasury_favourability": "moderate",
"treasury_favourability_confidence": "high",
"treasury_favourability_note": "Standard IO 2026 proportional return. ADA-denominated. No revenue share. WS2 Multi-Asset Treasury, if implemented, would have long-term structural benefit to treasury sustainability — but that's a future effect, not a mechanism in this proposal.",
"treasury_favourability_set_by": "ai",
"raw_return_text": "All funds not disbursed by the end of the delivery period will be returned to the Cardano Treasury. In the event of partial delivery or scope reduction, unspent funds associated with cancelled or reduced deliverables will be returned proportionally."
},
"lifecycle": {
"pipeline_state": "onchain_live",
"hydra_submitted_at": null,
"hydra_close_at": null,
"hydra_support_pct": null,
"onchain_submitted_at": "2026-04-22T00:00:00Z",
"onchain_vote_close_at": "2026-05-24T00:00:00Z",
"onchain_result": null,
"status_last_checked_at": "2026-05-11T16:20:00Z"
},
"links": {
"hydra_url": null,
"adastat_url": null,
"ipfs_cid": "QmXD6eoaFWrRoubFfvB2vSmLGbhVa66DbM9xw2dH1htRYK",
"ipfs_gateway_url": "https://ipnso-com.ipns.dweb.link/?cid=QmXD6eoaFWrRoubFfvB2vSmLGbhVa66DbM9xw2dH1htRYK",
"github_url": null,
"website_url": "https://www.iog.io",
"forum_thread_url": null,
"other": [
{
"label": "IO Momentum portfolio overview",
"url": "https://momentum.cardano.iog.io/"
}
]
},
"content": {
"abstract": "Three platform upgrades: (1) CIP-159 Account Address Enhancement — enables micro-fee collection (lifts minUTxOValue restriction), L2 reserves, fixed-supply token minting, Phase 1 targeting Dijkstra era; (2) CPS-23 Multi-Asset Treasury CIP — design work enabling Cardano Treasury to hold stablecoins and native assets alongside ADA; (3) Babel Fees — users pay transaction fees in any native asset (USDC, bridged BTC) via Nested Transactions (CIP-118), with Lace Wallet integration, MVP Feb 2027.",
"problem_statement": "Three blockers: (1) minUTxOValue prevents wallets charging micro-fees (avg tx fee ~0.39 ADA but minimum deposit ~1 ADA), makes batchers expensive, blocks L2 reserve patterns; (2) Treasury can only hold ADA — exposed to price volatility, limiting budget predictability for proposers; (3) Users must acquire ADA before transacting — key onboarding friction point, especially for Bitcoin and stablecoin holders bridging in.",
"proposed_solution": "WS1: CIP-159 Phase 1 (Dijkstra) — ADA-only direct deposits, arbitrary withdrawals, account balance intervals, PlutusV4 context, legacy Plutus mode; LedgerHD Step 1+2. WS2: CPS-23 preliminary research + draft CIP (Q4 2026) → community discussion + CIP-1694 amendments (Q1 2027) → merged (Q2 2027). WS3: Architecture + design (Q3 2026) → Babel Fee service implementation on testnet (Q4 2026) → Lace Wallet integration + production MVP with 2 native assets (Q1 2027). First provider is not required to be permissionless; architecture designed for extensibility.",
"deliverables": [
"CIP-159 Phase 1 ledger changes (serialization, rules, PlutusV4 context) — Dijkstra era ready",
"CIP-159 whitelisting and account state query",
"LedgerHD Steps 1 and 2 (snapshot adjustment + instant stake via account state)",
"CPS-23 draft CIP for multi-asset treasury design",
"CPS-23 community review + CIP-1694 amendments",
"CPS-23 merged CIP (Q2 2027)",
"Babel Fee service architecture and technical design document",
"Babel Fee service implementation — functional on testnet",
"Lace Wallet integration for Babel Fee payments",
"Production-ready Babel Fee MVP supporting BTC and USDC — Feb 2027"
],
"milestones": [
{
"name": "WS1 Phase 1 + LedgerHD Step 1 (Q3 2026)",
"deliverable": "CIP-159 Phase 1 ledger implementation; LedgerHD snapshots adjusted",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2026-09-30"
},
{
"name": "WS1 Phase 2 prep + whitelisting + LedgerHD Step 2 (Q4 2026)",
"deliverable": "Euler era definition; account whitelisting; LedgerHD instant stake",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2026-12-31"
},
{
"name": "WS2 Draft CIP (Q4 2026)",
"deliverable": "CPS-23 preliminary research + draft CIP",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2026-12-31"
},
{
"name": "WS2 Community + amendments (Q1 2027)",
"deliverable": "Community discussion + CIP-1694 amendments",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2027-03-31"
},
{
"name": "WS2 Merged (Q2 2027)",
"deliverable": "CIP and CIP-1694 amendments merged",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2027-06-30"
},
{
"name": "WS3 Architecture (Q3 2026)",
"deliverable": "Babel Fee technical design document for MVP (BTC, USDC)",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2026-09-30"
},
{
"name": "WS3 Service implementation (Q4 2026)",
"deliverable": "Babel Fee service on testnet — functional demonstration",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2026-12-31"
},
{
"name": "WS3 Lace + MVP (Q1 2027)",
"deliverable": "Lace Wallet integration; production-ready MVP with 2 native assets",
"ada_release": null,
"deadline": "2027-03-31"
}
],
"team": [],
"risks_disclosed": [
"Technical (Medium/Low): LedgerHD epoch-boundary rewards update — non-blocking, resolvable iteratively",
"Technical (High/Medium): CIP-165 (Canonical Ledger State) amendments required by CIP-159 — scope unclear, could slow delivery",
"Ecosystem (Low/High): Community pushback on Multi-Asset Treasury CIP approach — mitigated by early community engagement",
"Process (Low/High): WS2 depends on WS1 — if WS1 rejected or delayed, CIP validity affected",
"Technical (Medium/High): Babel Fees depends on CIP-118 Nested Transactions on testnet — if hard fork delayed, service development cannot be validated"
]
},
"metadata": {
"open_source": "yes",
"open_source_url": null,
"has_prior_funding": true,
"prior_funding_sources": [
"IO prior treasury allocations (same as other IO 2026 proposals)"
],
"has_prior_delivery": true,
"prior_delivery_evidence": "CIP-159 technical design ready; CPS-23 problem statement published; CIP-118 Nested Transactions in progress. IO is the canonical Cardano ledger team.",
"admin_model": "intersect",
"administrator_name": "Intersect",
"oversight_committee": [
"Sundae Labs",
"Cardano Foundation",
"DQuadrant",
"Xerberus",
"NMKR"
],
"administration_fee_pct": 3,
"duplicate_of_existing_solution": {
"value": "no",
"confidence": "high",
"set_by": "ai"
},
"duplicate_notes": "CV26 explicitly scoped OUT Babel Fees production MVP — confirming this is the designated delivery vehicle. CIP-159 and CPS-23 are unique ledger-level work that only IO can execute. No duplicate."
},
"relationships": {
"bundle_with": [
"onchain-cardano-vision-2026",
"onchain-io-developer-experience-initiative",
"onchain-io-ensurable-cardano-maintenance",
"onchain-io-cardano-high-assurance",
"onchain-io-vacuumlabs-plutus-enhancement",
"onchain-io-consensus-initiative",
"onchain-io-midgard-l2-scalability"
],
"supersedes": [],
"competes_with": [],
"depends_on": [],
"notes": "CIP-159 Phase 1 targets Dijkstra hard fork (separate governance action needed). Babel Fees depends on CIP-118 Nested Transactions being on testnet (also a separate initiative). CV26 explicitly scoped out Babel Fees production work to this proposal. WS1 is a prerequisite for WS2 (Multi-Asset Treasury). Ensurable Systems appears again as specialist partner — same as Maintenance Initiative."
},
"community_signals": {
"comment_count": 0,
"notable_objections": [],
"notable_endorsements": [],
"forum_thread_urls": [],
"live_voting_state": {
"as_of": "2026-05-11",
"drep_yes_ada": 550830000,
"drep_no_ada": 5240000000,
"drep_explicit_no_ada": 130470000,
"drep_no_confidence_ada": 200780000,
"drep_not_voted_ada": 4900000000,
"drep_total_active_stake_ada": 14930000000,
"cc_yes": 1,
"cc_no": 0,
"cc_not_voted": 6,
"interpretation": "FAILING but strongest Yes in IO batch (550M). Babel Fees and micro-fees are highly visible, user-facing features — DReps appear more sympathetic to feature work than pure maintenance or research. Still far from passing threshold."
}
},
"ecosystem_demand": {
"evidence_level": "strong",
"evidence_level_confidence": "high",
"evidence_level_set_by": "ai",
"active_users_known": true,
"active_users_examples": [
{
"name": "Lace Wallet (named integration target for Babel Fees)",
"kind": "integrator",
"url": null
},
{
"name": "Midgard (depends on CIP-159 L2 reserve patterns)",
"kind": "integrator",
"url": null
},
{
"name": "All Cardano DeFi protocols (benefit from cheaper batchers via micro-fees)",
"kind": "user",
"url": null
}
],
"developer_demand_signals": [
"Average tx fee ~0.39 ADA but minUTxOValue forces minimum ~1 ADA — well-known friction, documented community complaints",
"Babel Fees is explicitly in the Cardano 2030 Strategy (Pillar 5, A.2 invisible technology)",
"USDCx now live on Cardano — first stablecoin, creates immediate Babel Fees demand",
"192+ companies hold BTC on balance sheets with no productive Cardano deployment path (Pogun proposal also documents this)",
"CIP-118 Nested Transactions already in progress — Babel Fees builds directly on this"
],
"adoption_risk_notes": "Demand is very strong and well-documented. Babel Fees is one of the most-requested Cardano features. CIP-159 has a clear problem statement and technical design ready. Risk is primarily dependency chain: Dijkstra hard fork → CIP-159; CIP-118 Nested Transactions testnet → Babel Fees MVP."
},
"incumbents": {
"has_existing_solution": "no",
"has_existing_solution_confidence": "high",
"has_existing_solution_set_by": "ai",
"existing_solutions": [],
"differentiation_claim": "These are ledger-level protocol changes — only IO (the Cardano ledger team) can deliver them. No community team is positioned to implement CIP-159 ledger rules or the CPS-23 Multi-Asset Treasury design. Babel Fees implementation requires Nested Transactions (CIP-118) which is itself an IO initiative.",
"differentiation_credibility": "high"
},
"risk_flags": {
"aggressive_peg": false,
"self_administered_no_oversight": false,
"incumbent_already_delivering": false,
"no_evidence_of_demand": false,
"competes_with_in_batch": false,
"concentration_risk": true,
"failing_live_vote": true,
"hard_fork_dependency": true
},
"risk_flags_note": "hard_fork_dependency: CIP-159 targets Dijkstra hard fork (separate governance action). Babel Fees depends on CIP-118 Nested Transactions on testnet. concentration_risk: IO portfolio bundle. failing_live_vote: Yes 550M vs No 5.24B, expires May 24 — highest Yes in IO batch.",
"_meta": {
"title": "IO: Cardano Upgrades",
"proposer": "Input Output (IO) & Ensurable Systems"
}
}