The Cardano Budget Process has commenced voting on the Hydra platform to fund core usability and security infrastructure. Meanwhile, the Van Rossem hard fork (Protocol Version 11) successfully launched on the PreProd testnet, marking the final checkpoint before mainnet deployment. New CIP updates introduced variable deposits for stake pool pledges and Hydra-powered L2 voting, while the Cardano Foundation announced a three-year partnership with the Brazilian Olympic Committee and published an agricultural tracking case study in India.

The Gimbalabs Piece of Pie Hackathon 2026 is underway, utilizing a "build in public" format with qualification based on weekly public updates. Three new CIP updates entered the pipeline, introducing mobile wallet deep-link signing and transaction prioritization, while Aiken v1.1.22 launched with compiler optimizations. Lastly, DReps are voting on a revised Cardano Summit 2026 proposal featuring a 22% budget cut, and the Foundation highlighted stablecoin insights from Mastercard.

Pyth Pro is live on Cardano, delivering low-latency institutional price feeds to DeFi via Indigo Protocol. Separately, EMURGO announced Yoroi Wallet's rebrand to SecondFi, evolving it into a broader neofinance platform. Intersect confirmed its committee election results and verified Node v11.0.1 is mainnet-ready for the Van Rossem hard fork. Additionally, the Cardano Foundation partnered with the University of Brasília for a new tech lab and integrated with Scorechain for compliance.

Cardano has officially integrated the x402 standard, enabling automated payments for AI agents, while Blockfrost introduced decentralized data backups through Filecoin. Technical milestones include the nearing mainnet-readiness of the Van Rossem Upgrade (Node v11.0) and the release of the 2026-27 Budget Proposal. The introduction of the JuLC compiler at JCON now allows Java developers to build smart contracts, alongside a major 21M ADA marketing proposal aimed at scaling enterprise adoption.

Pragma is now accepting applications for open-source infrastructure projects following Buidler Fest 2026 in Buenos Aires. New highlights include the Gerolamo TypeScript node, a Cardano ETF (CRDD) from Volatility Shares, and the network surpassing 120 million transactions. Despite a minor node regression fix, the Van Rossem hard fork remains on track for late June.

The Midnight network has officially launched its mainnet, enabling privacy-preserving applications via zero-knowledge proofs. FluidTokens executed the first native Bitcoin–Cardano atomic swap, allowing trustless trading without bridges. Cardano Node v.10.7.0 was pre-released, introducing the LSM Tree to reduce RAM usage from 24GB to 8GB. Stake Pool Operators are invited to an SPO Call on April 2 to discuss these updates and the path toward the Van Rossum hard fork.

Programmable Tokens and the CIP-0113 standard are live, allowing customizable on-chain rules for native assets. Cardano.org has added Spanish support, and the Summit Rio 2025 highlighted the value of IRL collaboration. FluidTokens introduced gold-backed lending, while the new SuperNode tool simplifies deployment for SPOs and partner chains.

USDCx is now live on mainnet via Circle’s xReserve, providing native, 1:1 backed liquidity to the ecosystem. The Cardano Foundation has assumed stewardship of Project Catalyst and is transitioning cardano.org into a multilingual platform. Technical updates include the release of Cardano-Signer 1.35.0, while enterprise adoption scales through projects like Petrobras and Plastiks. Additionally, the community welcomes Bernard Sibanda as a new ambassador focused on developer education.

LayerZero integration has been approved, connecting the network to over 150 blockchains to expand cross-chain liquidity. The Cardano Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi showcased regional adoption, while node v10.5.4 introduced critical networking enhancements for resilience. Additionally, the Midnight mainnet is on track for a late March launch, coinciding with the official debut of ada futures on the CME Group exchange.

USDCx is coming to Cardano through an agreement between Circle and the Cardano Pentad, funded via the Critical Infrastructure Budget. Mesh has launched CGOV, an open-source governance platform, while Intersect released its State of Developer Experience Survey. The community also focused on technical optimization through the NuLuna Roundtable in Barcelona and an SPO Table Talk addressing critical Plutus memory limits.