Cardano Marks Nine Years Since Genesis
Cardano has marked nine years since its first block was minted, highlighting the network’s growth in block production, transactions, staking infrastructure and on-chain governance. The Cardano Foundation said the blockchain had reached 2,890 stake pools, 13,978,119 blocks and 123,982,111 transactions by the anniversary.
The Cardano genesis block was created on September 23, 2017, while the public mainnet launched several days later on September 29. That distinction makes the September 23 anniversary a milestone for the network’s underlying blockchain, while September 29 marks the mainnet launch associated with Cardano’s early Byron era.
One of the biggest changes since 2017 has been the transition toward community-operated block production. Cardano’s Shelley upgrade in 2020 introduced stake pools and decentralized block production, replacing the earlier federated model and establishing staking as a central part of the network’s operation.
The Foundation’s latest figures also show the scale of activity recorded by the ledger. More than 123.9 million transactions have now been processed, while almost 14 million blocks have been produced since the genesis block, providing a long-running record of network activity.
Cardano has also moved from a blockchain primarily focused on its core ledger to a network supporting smart contracts, native assets and decentralized applications. The Alonzo upgrade in 2021 introduced smart-contract functionality, while later upgrades expanded performance, interoperability and governance capabilities.
The anniversary comes as Cardano’s governance system becomes one of the defining parts of its current architecture. The network now has an on-chain constitution, while the Foundation reported 36,322 votes across 158 governance actions since the introduction of its governance framework.
Governance Becomes Part of Cardano’s Network
Cardano’s current Constitution establishes rules for how the ecosystem handles governance, including the roles of Delegated Representatives, the Constitutional Committee and stake pool operators. It also sets principles covering transactions, application development, interoperability, network security and the management of the Cardano treasury.
The Constitution itself is recorded through Cardano’s on-chain governance process. Its framework states that amendments require approval through an on-chain governance action meeting the applicable voting threshold, giving governance decisions a direct connection to the blockchain rather than leaving them solely to off-chain organizations.
This represents a significant change from Cardano’s early years. Governance was initially dominated by the organizations building and maintaining the protocol, while the current system gives ADA holders and other governance participants formal mechanisms for voting on proposals that can affect the network.
Related: Cardano Ecosystem Gains Momentum With Leios, Mastercard and Plutus Updates
The nine-year milestone also arrives as Cardano continues working on additional scaling and protocol upgrades. Hydra remains part of the network’s scaling strategy, while Leios and Peras are being developed to increase throughput capacity and improve settlement characteristics.
Further development is planned for the network’s underlying infrastructure. Current reporting points to Dijkstra Phase 1 and Linear Leios work, while the Amaru Rust-based node is expected to begin producing mainnet blocks later in 2026. These projects remain part of Cardano’s ongoing technical roadmap rather than completed network upgrades.
For ADA holders and the wider Cardano community, the anniversary provides a snapshot of how much of the network now exists onchain. The figures cover infrastructure, transaction activity and governance participation, but they do not by themselves measure application adoption, economic activity or the value generated by projects building on Cardano.
Cardano enters its tenth year with a network that is materially different from the one launched in 2017. Its next phase will be shaped by how effectively the existing staking, smart-contract and governance infrastructure translates into greater usage, while upcoming scaling and node-development projects determine how the blockchain handles future demand.
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