Cardano NFT Controversy: Allegations and Responses
Ongoing Dispute Between Charles Hoskinson and Masato Alexander
The public spat between Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, and NFT artist Masato Alexander is gaining traction. Alexander has accused Hoskinson of secretly transferring 318 million ADA, valued at approximately $619 million, from legacy presale wallets into Cardano’s reserves during the 2021 Allegra hard fork. Hoskinson, however, contends that this narrative is a ploy to boost visibility for an Ethereum-based project.
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Accusations and Defenses
In a series of posts on X, Hoskinson suggested the allegations were a strategic move by Alexander for fundraising purposes. Hoskinson shared a screenshot of a private conversation where Alexander mentioned his aim to secure funding for his project, Akua. This led to an immediate response from Alexander, questioning the ethics of sharing private messages. Another conversation involving Phil Harman, CEO of Anastasia Labs, surfaced, where he inquired about the possibility of a Cardano version of Akua. Harman expressed displeasure over the leak of this exchange, which was intended to be constructive advice.
Details on the Akua Project
Akua is positioned as an innovative approach to prediction markets, with a focus on managing natural-disaster risks like earthquakes. The project’s protocol architecture is compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), a point that led Cardano community engineer Lucas to dismiss Alexander’s claims as a marketing strategy aimed at the Ethereum community. Hoskinson echoed these sentiments, arguing the accusations were a smear campaign to attract Ethereum investors. He has threatened legal action and called for an independent audit of the disputed transactions, asserting that the majority of the original vouchers were redeemed and a residual balance was donated to Intersect, a new governance entity.
Understanding the Cardano Token Voucher Process
In a detailed explanation on X, Hoskinson addressed the mechanics behind the 2021 token voucher sweep. He argued that many Japanese retail investors, particularly older ones, found the redemption process challenging. He emphasized a moral obligation to modify the redemption mechanism to accommodate these buyers. According to Hoskinson, the narrative that funds were stolen is misleading and sensationalized. Conversely, Alexander views the voucher sweep as an unjust alteration of history, claiming that only a fraction of the funds have reappeared at Intersect.
Awaiting Audit Results
An audit conducted by the global law firm McDermott Will & Emery and the auditing firm BDO aims to provide a definitive conclusion on the ADA voucher redemption. The results are eagerly awaited, though the publication date remains uncertain.
As of the latest updates, ADA is trading at $0.7889. The cryptocurrency is once again testing key resistance zones, as observed in market charts.
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