Cardano Blockchain Achieves 100% Decentralization – Community Now Controls All Block Production

In what IOHK describes as a milestone that will go down in history, the Cardano blockchain is now completely decentralized.

What Happened: This means that the community, or the network’s 2200 stake pool operators, are now exclusively responsible for block production on the network.

LEVEL UP! So there we have it, 100% decentralized block production on #Cardano.
Thank you to each and every SPO and developer out there who has brought us here, helping build, run & grow #Cardano. This is a great moment. And we're still just getting started. Over to you... pic.twitter.com/MexAv3HhNP

— Input Output (@InputOutputHK) March 31, 2021

In contrast to Cardano, Bitcoin’s blockchain is largely in the hands of the ten most prominent Bitcoin mining pools, which account for 85% of the network’s block production.

Why It Matters: Diversifying the block production across a larger number of people increases the security of the blockchain, as it reduces the likelihood of a 51% attack, or a few bad actors gaining control of the network.

According to Aparna Jue, Cardano’s product director at IOHK, “Achieving decentralization of block production is significant not just for Cardano but also the wider blockchain industry.”

Now that decentralization of block production has been achieved, the next steps will be decentralization of the other two elements - governance and network.

On the governance front, the blockchain has already made strides with its Project Catalyst – an $80 million fund that was funded by the community, that in turn, votes on proposals for the improvement of the network.

Meanwhile, the blockchain’s native cryptocurrency ADA traded higher at $1.20 at press time. ADA has rallied over 566% since the beginning of the year and is currently the fifth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap.