Cardano's Government Initiative Exclusion: The "Absurd Price" Tag from Chainlink
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has shed light on why his blockchain platform was notably absent from a recent U.S. government initiative aimed at publishing official economic data on public blockchains. The exclusion, it turns out, was not due to technical or regulatory hurdles, but rather an "absurd" integration fee quoted by Chainlink, rendering Cardano's participation economically unfeasible.
Chainlink’s Costly Proposition
The U.S. government program saw other major blockchain networks like Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche, and Optimism selected to host macroeconomic data. Cardano's unexpected omission surprised many in the crypto community. During a recent YouTube AMA, Hoskinson clarified that the core issue was financial. He described the integration fee proposed by Oracle specialist Chainlink as excessively high, an "absurd number" that effectively priced Cardano out of the initiative. Despite his strong criticism of Chainlink's pricing, Hoskinson maintained a respectful tone towards Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov, acknowledging him as "extremely smart" and "a very good businessman," highlighting Chainlink's powerful and indispensable position within the blockchain ecosystem for connecting smart contracts to real-world data.
Impact on Cardano's DeFi Ambitions
The inability to secure a cost-effective oracle integration presents a significant challenge for Cardano's decentralized finance (DeFi) landscape. Without such integration, the platform struggles to keep pace with competitors. For instance, Ethereum's DeFi ecosystem saw a substantial increase in Total Value Locked (TVL), adding approximately $13.4 billion in August alone, largely attributed to its Chainlink integrations. In contrast, Cardano's TVL dipped below $400 million in August, with a noticeable decline in daily active addresses. This trend runs counter to Cardano's (ADA) price performance, which experienced a steady increase during the same period. Looking ahead, Hoskinson remains optimistic about finding a resolution with Chainlink. He also revealed ongoing discussions regarding a potential collaboration with the USD1 stablecoin project and the Aave lending protocol. Should Cardano successfully integrate a major stablecoin and secure enhanced oracle and lending support through Chainlink, it could significantly bolster its DeFi foundations and competitiveness. At the time of reporting, Cardano (ADA) trades at $0.8307, showing a modest 1.1% increase over the last 24 hours.
