Cardano: The Revolutionary Cryptocurrency Taking the World by Storm

Cryptocurrency is a popular topic these days, and one that is especially worthy of attention is Cardano. As a virtual currency, Cardano features fantastic technology representing a sustainable and secure blockchain with groundbreaking applications. In this article, we'll delve into Cardano's history, where to buy it, and more life-changing content.

What is Cardano?

Cardano is a third-generation distributed proof of stake (PoS) platform that has the potential of being more efficient than proof of work (PoW) networks like Ethereum. Over the years, we've seen that the scalability, sustainability, and interoperability of PoW networks are limited due to rising costs, slow event times, and energy consumption. 

The Cardano blockchain platform runs on the Oroboros consensus protocol, which was Cardano's creation during its founding phase. It is the first PoS protocol that's proven to be safe and the first capable of accessing information from scientific academic research.

Cardano's Five Eras

There are five stages, also known as five eras, of Cardano's growth, all anchored in a research-based framework that includes peer-reviewed insights. This uses evidence-based methods to achieve future milestones of the applications. The five eras are:

1•The Foundation (Byron Era)

2•Decentralization (Shelley Era)

3•Smart Contracts (Goguen Era)

4•Scaling (Basho Era)

•5Governance (Voltaire Era)

6•Cardano's History

The development of Cardano began in 2015, but it was launched in 2017 by Charles Hoskinson, who happens to be one of Ethereum's founders. After some controversy in Ethereum, Hoskinson left and soon co-founded IOHK, a blockchain design company whose primary business is Cardano's development. The platform is named after Gerolamo Cardano, while the digital currency is named after Ada Lovelace.

Cardano's Growth

Cardano's birth was funded through its crowd sale, and the token debuted with a market value of 600 million dollars. This was amazing, but it wasn't enough, and by the end of 2017, Cardano's market value was 10 billion dollars. In fact, Cardano actually reached 33 billion dollars at one point in 2018 before the general fall of the crypto market, which took its value back to 10 billion dollars.

Cardano's Partnerships

IOHK, the company behind Cardano's development, has formed numerous partnerships with various industries. In 2017, the platform helped the University of Edinburgh launch the Blockchain Technology Laboratory. In 2020, IOHK made a donation worth 500,000 in ADA to the University of Wyoming to support blockchain development. They also formed a partnership with the Ethiopian government to deploy their technology in several industries across the country.

Cardano's Applications

Cardano has released three products, namely Adela Trace, Adela Scan, and Adela Prism. Adela Prism will serve as an identity management tool providing access to services. Services will include opening a bank account and checking eligibility for state aid. The first two are to track the journey of the product through its supply chain. Also, this platform is working to develop an intelligent contract service that's secure and stable for the development of enterprise-class applications.

Why Cardano?

Cardano is an alternative to Ethereum or even an upgrade to Ethereum, as both platforms work for similar applications, i.e., smart contracts. They both aim to build a unified and decentralized system, but Cardano has been anointed as a ruling third-generation platform over Ethereum's second-generation credentials. Cardano is also working towards providing banking services to the world.