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Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson says the next phase of cryptocurrency adoption will be driven less by faster blockchains and more by safety, governance and consumer protections.
Ethereum ‘Keeps Doing Things Wrong’
In an interview with CoinDesk on July 23, Hoskinson, a co-founder of Ethereum before launching Cardano, was sharply critical of the network’s governance model.
He argued Ethereum lacks an on-chain treasury capable of sustainably funding long-term development and instead depends on a handful of influential organizations.
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“If Ethereum was to just take 5% of protocol revenue and give it to the Ethereum Foundation, they’d have $390 million a year to work with,” he said.
Hoskinson also criticized Ethereum’s reliance on large companies to shape development priorities, arguing that meaningful decentralization requires token holders, not corporations, to determine the network’s future through on-chain voting.
He said Cardano’s governance framework, while slower to develop, provides a more sustainable long-term model.
“People are starting to wake up, especially in the age of AI hacking where everything is getting broken, that speed to market is not necessarily the most desirable thing,” Hoskinson said.
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Crypto Needs An Insurance Layer
Following a recent bridge exploit involving Cardano-related infrastructure, Hoskinson said the industry’s biggest missing component is insurance.
He proposed optional insurance products for crypto wallets and cross-chain bridges, funded through premiums and backed by collateral pools.
Under the model, users would pay recurring fees while protocols meeting defined security standards could qualify for coverage.
Insurance would compensate victims after hacks and encourage better software practices across the industry, he said.
“You need financial systems with rule of law and checks and balances and the ability to get restitution when bad things happen,” Hoskinson said.
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Hoskinson expects the next wave of crypto adoption to come from integrating blockchain with identity, privacy, insurance and real-world financial infrastructure rather than simply increasing transaction throughput.
Image: Shutterstock
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Building Wealth Across More Than Just the Market
Building a resilient portfolio means thinking beyond a single asset or market trend. Economic cycles shift, sectors rise and fall, and no one investment performs well in every environment. That’s why many investors look to diversify with platforms that provide access to real estate, fixed-income opportunities, precious metals, and even self-directed retirement accounts. By spreading exposure across multiple asset classes, it becomes easier to manage risk, capture steady returns, and create long-term wealth that isn’t tied to the fortunes of just one company or industry.
Arrived
Backed by Jeff Bezos, Arrived Homes makes real estate investing accessible with a low barrier to entry. Investors can buy fractional shares of single-family rentals and vacation homes starting with as little as $100. This allows everyday investors to diversify into real estate, collect rental income, and build long-term wealth without needing to manage properties directly.
Realberry
Institutional-quality real estate has traditionally been difficult for individual investors to access. Realberry gives accredited investors direct access to private real estate opportunities backed by a team with 35 years of experience, $3.4 billion in assets under management, and $481 million in cumulative distributions paid to investors as of Q4 2025, according to the company. With a portfolio spanning 13 million square feet across seven U.S. states, Realberry focuses on acquiring, developing, and managing real estate with an emphasis on long-term value creation while its principals often invest alongside clients to help align interests.
FarmTogether
Farmland has historically held its value through market volatility and delivered returns uncorrelated to stocks and bonds. For accredited investors, FarmTogether offers direct access to high-quality U.S. farmland starting at $15,000 — fully managed, with no landlord headaches.
Immersed
Immersed is building technology for the future of work through spatial computing. Known for its AR/VR productivity platform that enables users to work across multiple virtual screens, the company has grown to more than 1.5 million users worldwide. Immersed is also developing Visor, a lightweight headset designed specifically for professional productivity, positioning the company at the intersection of remote work, extended reality (XR), and next-generation computing.
Fundrise
Private real estate and private credit can add income and stability to a stock-heavy portfolio. Fundrise offers access to diversified private real estate and credit strategies through an easy-to-use platform, with professionally managed portfolios designed to generate passive income and long-term growth.
Mode Mobile
Mode Mobile is changing the way people interact with their phones by letting users earn money from the same apps and activities they already use every day. Instead of platforms keeping all the advertising revenue, Mode Mobile shares a portion back with users who engage with content, play games, and scroll on their devices. Named one of Deloitte’s fastest-growing software companies in North America, the company has built a large beta user base and is scaling a model that turns everyday smartphone usage into a potential income stream.
EquityMultiple
For accredited investors looking beyond stocks and bonds, EquityMultiple provides access to vetted commercial real estate deals starting at $5,000, with only ~5% of opportunities passing their due diligence process.
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