Cardano Foundation Proposes Nearly $5 Million Treasury Withdrawal for 2027 Global Events

The Cardano Foundation has proposed withdrawing $4,999,155 from the Cardano treasury to fund its Cardano Global Events 2027 program. The plan includes shared booths at international conferences, hackathons, workshops and travel support for selected ecosystem teams.

The proposal would continue an earlier treasury-funded events strategy delivered by the Foundation, EMURGO and Rare Network. If approved, the new program would begin with Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi in February 2027.

Cardano Global Events Budget Covers 12 Conferences

The requested amount is equivalent to 24,995,775 ADA at an assumed price of $0.20 per ADA. The estimate includes event costs, travel, taxes and audit fees.

Sponsorship packages account for the largest share, at $1,989,000, covering items such as exhibition space, tickets and speaking opportunities. Booth construction and audiovisual equipment are budgeted at $1,060,000, while travel for builders and staff accounts for $702,000 and side events for $695,000.

The remaining budget includes $233,100 in local partner fees across six events, $82,000 for merchandise and $238,055 for taxes, audit and other fees. The Foundation states that it will not charge for staff time or make a profit from the program. Unused funds would return to the treasury under the withdrawal terms.

The proposed calendar includes Consensus Miami, TOKEN2049 in New York and Singapore, Rare Evo in San Francisco, Web Summit in Lisbon and India Blockchain Week in Bangalore. Each conference would have a funded side event, with four hackathons and a Dev Gov Day at Rare Evo planned across the program.

The calendar has expanded from 11 conferences in the Foundation’s earlier outline to 12. Web Summit was added, while several other events and locations changed following community feedback and updates from organizers.

Travel Support for Cardano Builders and Previous Results

Any team building on Cardano with a product live on mainnet could apply for travel support. The Foundation plans to open applications on the Cardano Forum ahead of each quarter’s events and select participants in consultation with Intersect’s Growth and Marketing Committee.

Applicants’ availability to demonstrate their products at the booth and report on outcomes afterward would be among the selection criteria. Support would cover economy travel and accommodation, subject to the Foundation’s terms and identity checks. The final report would name each supported project and the amount paid.

The proposal builds on the 2025–2026 Unified Global Events Marketing Strategy. According to the Foundation, the earlier program included 20 activities, featured 79 Cardano projects, recorded 8,191 booth contacts and engaged 1,169 developers. It also reported 219 collaborations initiated, including 50 involving government and regulatory bodies.

For 2027, the Foundation has set targets of 9,520 booth contacts, 137 workshops and builder presentations, and 4,750 registrations for side events.

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Treasury Vote and Cardano’s Proposed 2027 Budget Process

The events proposal follows Intersect’s publication of the proposed Cardano Ecosystem Budget Process, which would organize treasury funding into budget domains. Under that concept, events would fall within the Marketing, Analysis & Events domain.

The Cardano Foundation has put itself forward as a potential steward of the domain. It proposes that, if the events request is approved, the amount would count toward the domain’s budget cap even if another steward is selected. The Foundation also states that the events proposal could operate independently if the wider budget process is not approved.

The Foundation plans to submit the treasury withdrawal as an on-chain governance action in November, with delegated representatives, known as DReps, voting on the request. It has scheduled two sessions for DReps on November 9 at 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Central European Time.

The proposed event list and budget depend on approval timing and final vendor pricing. According to the Foundation, approval after the end of December 2026 could require changes to the calendar, including the potential removal or replacement of the Nairobi event in February.