Cardano Treasury Roundtable Map 2027 Funding Reform

Cardano Foundation roundtable wey happen on September 21 check how the ecosystem fit reform treasury funding after two budget cycles show say planning, proposal comparison and accountability still get gaps. Nicolas Cerny, Alex Maaza, Thomas Lindseth, Vaibhav Solanki and William Norris discuss ways to connect the Net Change Limit with annual priorities and measurable results.

The roundtable no produce any binding decision. The main proposals include to divide the spending ceiling into categories, release funding through several windows, coordinate governance actions with annual calendar and review work wey dem don fund before dem approve another cycle.

Two Funding Cycles Show Planning Gap

The Net Change Limit, wey people sabi as NCL, define how much fit commot from Cardano treasury during one specified period. E provide financial ceiling but e no decide which areas suppose receive funding, how to compare competing proposals or how much capacity suppose remain for later requests.

Figures wey Cerny present show how the process expand between the first two cycles. For 2025, 45 treasury withdrawal governance actions request combined 357 million ADA. Thirty-nine of those actions come through the Intersect budget process.

During 2026, 59 treasury withdrawal actions don already enter by the time of the roundtable, and only 11 originate through the Intersect process. The remaining submissions come from independent teams or other funding routes.

The figures na for requests, no be the amounts wey dem finally approve or distribute. But dem still reflect significant change for how applicants dey approach the treasury. More teams dey submit directly, often outside common review process wey for allow comparable proposals make dem assess together before onchain vote.

So DReps dey face two questions at once. Dem must decide whether one individual proposal deserve funding and whether to support am go still leave enough capacity for requests wey fit arrive later. One attractive proposal fit get support early even if higher priority or competing offer show several months afterward.

The increase for direct submissions follow constitutional change wey take effect for January 2026. Under the previous framework, treasury withdrawal generally require approved budget info action before e fit be constitutional. Many applicants dey submit similar documents twice, first as informational action and later as withdrawal request.

To remove that requirement reduce administrative duplication and make treasury access more permissionless. But e also remove part of the preparation and social review wey previously dey happen before proposal reach withdrawal stage.

Participants no propose to restore the earlier process as e be before. Dem focus the discussion on how to create coordination without giving one organization the authority to decide who fit request funding.

Categories and Funding Windows Fit Reshape NCL

One proposal go divide the NCL into defined spending categories. Instead of to set only the maximum amount of ADA available, the same process fit allocate portions of the limit to core protocol development, infrastructure maintenance, ecosystem growth, adoption, governance and reserves.

Norris argue say this go separate decisions wey currently combine inside each treasury vote. DReps fit first determine how much the ecosystem intend to spend inside one domain and then evaluate which proposals get the strongest delivery plan inside that allocation.

Lindseth don advance related model through Cardano Constitutional Amendment Proposal process. Him proposal go expand the NCL from single ceiling into strategic spending plan. The community go approve both the total limit and the maximum allocation wey dem assign to each category.

This structure fit prevent one area from consuming most of the available capacity before dem consider other priorities. Reserve category fit preserve flexibility for security requirements, partnerships or infrastructure needs wey nobody know when dem create the annual plan.

Participants also discuss to release funds through scheduled windows instead of to make the entire annual allocation available at once. Norris use example of 72 epoch NCL wey dem divide into three 24 epoch windows of approximately four months each.

The total ceiling and category allocations go still remain, but only part of the funding go dey accessible during each window. This fit reserve capacity for later proposals and reduce incentive to submit at the beginning of the cycle. DReps go establish the structure once and then evaluate proposals inside am throughout the year.

Solanki propose to combine the windows with governance calendar. Specific periods fit reserve for treasury withdrawals, constitutional amendments and protocol parameter changes, so that fewer unrelated decisions go compete for attention at the same time.

Defined submission period go also allow similar proposals to review together. When several providers dey seek funding for comparable work, DReps fit assess scope, price and delivery terms before dem support one of them. The calendar no necessarily need constitutional restriction. E fit operate as coordinated DRep policy with exceptions for urgent requirements.

CIP-0179 identify as possible tool to set priorities before binding treasury votes. The proposed standard define formats for onchain surveys and polls, including rankings, ratings, numerical ranges and point allocation.

DReps fit use those mechanisms to rank funding domains or compare proposals inside one category. The results no go approve budget, but dem fit provide structured measure of preferences before formal governance actions enter.

Maaza connect the process with Cardano 2030. Instead of to rebuild the budget from separate proposals every year, the ecosystem fit identify the outcomes required by 2030, determine wetin must complete during 2027 and fund the domains wey need to deliver those milestones.

The model fit also introduce domain stewards wey understand the needs of particular area and help DReps evaluate competing providers. Stewards go guide mandate, no be say dem go automatically receive the work. Transparent mandates, vendor competition and process to replace underperforming organizations go dey required to prevent stewardship from protecting established providers.

Reporting Standards Define the 2027 Test

The roundtable return many times to the difficulty of evaluating previously funded work. DReps wey dey review new request fit need to confirm whether the same team receive earlier funding, wetin dem commit to deliver and whether dem complete those commitments.

That information no dey consistently available through one reporting system. Cardano Constitution don already require treasury applicants to disclose recent funding wey dem receive, but disclosure alone no dey establish whether the funded work meet its objectives.

Cerny propose reporting standards wey dem go adapt to different categories. Protocol infrastructure, events, marketing programs and investment initiatives no go use identical performance measures, but each fit provide verifiable records wey cover expenditure, milestones and outcomes. Where e appropriate, parts of those reports fit connect to onchain records.

Solanki and other participants support postmortem review at the end of each budget cycle. The review go document wetin receive funding, wetin dem deliver and how the results compare with the commitments wey governance approve.

To create single review for 2026 go hard pass the previous cycle because proposals come through multiple processes with different contracts, reporting methods and definitions of completion. That fragmentation na also why dem dey consider common standard.

Treasury policy determine how community-controlled ADA dey convert into protocol work, infrastructure, adoption programs and ecosystem services. Each approval also reduce the capital wey remain for competing proposals, so timing, comparison and evidence of delivery dey inside the same governance decision.

Dem no select any reform model during the roundtable. Before the 2027 cycle, Cardano still need to decide whether spending categories belong inside the Constitution or inside coordinated policy, how allocations fit change during one cycle, who go evaluate results and which authority domain stewards go hold.

Those decisions go determine whether the next NCL remain primarily spending ceiling or e go become annual plan wey connect Cardano treasury with defined priorities, competitive selection and verifiable delivery.