Charles Hoskinson Slams ‘Baseless’ Claims of Diverting Cardano Funds - Crypto Economy

TL;DR

• Charles Hoskinson denied allegations of diverting funds from the Cardano treasury, calling them ironic and driven by bias.
• The conflict between IOG and the Cardano Foundation escalated after a $31 million ADA cut to the 2025 budget.
• Hoskinson highlighted progress on Midnight, a privacy-focused blockchain built in partnership with Brave, Blockchain.com, Bitcoin.com, and Google Cloud.

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Charles Hoskinson responded sharply to accusations from a stake pool operator who claimed he had redirected funds from the Cardano treasury to personal projects.

The network’s founder and CEO of Input Output Global called the allegations ironic, arguing that a distorted narrative has taken hold within the community — one that blames him for the network’s challenges while portraying the Cardano Foundation in a favorable light. Hoskinson emphasized that his leadership has been critical to the network’s technical and strategic progress, and that critics overlook IOG’s concrete contributions to project’s growth.

Internal Rift Between IOG and the Cardano Foundation

Tensions between IOG and the Cardano Foundation intensified after the Foundation proposed cutting 31 million ADA from the ecosystem’s 2025 budget. The reduction would directly impact IOG’s development funding, which Hoskinson interpreted as an attempt to undermine his team’s work.

He also criticized the Foundation’s lack of transparency and its unelected board, which he accused of operating without accountability. According to Hoskinson, the board had even considered voting against the overall ecosystem budget last year — a move he said would have jeopardized the continuity of key projects. Despite this tension, some members of the community continue to call for both sides to find common ground to preserve the network’s stability.

Hoskinson’s Focus Remains on Midnight

Despite the institutional dispute, Hoskinson remains focused on the advancement of Midnight, a privacy-oriented blockchain he describes as the most transformative development in Cardano’s history.

Midnight has formed partnerships with Brave, Blockchain.com, Bitcoin.com, and Google Cloud, strengthening both its own network and Cardano’s broader ecosystem. Hoskinson emphasized that these alliances are strategic since Midnight is a native Cardano token, meaning its adoption expands the network’s overall utility and reach. He added that the project aims to address Cardano’s longstanding limitations, including the absence of robust oracle systems and native stablecoin infrastructure.