Cardano Activates Van Rossem Hard Fork, Paving Way for Scalability Upgrade

Cardano's Van Rossem hard fork has activated on July 18, moving the network to protocol version 11 and preparing for a future scalability upgrade.

This is the first Cardano upgrade approved entirely through its onchain governance system, rather than by founding developer Input Output. The upgrade lowers smart contract execution costs and adds new capabilities to Plutus, the platform developers use to write Cardano's smart contracts.

The Van Rossem hard fork was initiated, debated, and ratified by stakeholders through Cardano's onchain governance system. This marks a shift in who controls protocol changes, with the network's holders now having a formal vote in where it goes.