Here Comes ‘Shelley’: ADA Price Excels With Cardano Upgrade Inbound

Cardano (ADA) has seen its value increase by around 50% since May 25. This recent value hike comes in the wake of project co-founder Charles Hoskinson revealing the roadmap for Cardano’s much-hyped “Shelley” upgrade via a YouTube podcast hosted by crypto pundit Lark Davis, also known as Cryptolark.

As part of the aforementioned upgrade, the Cardano ecosystem will transition from being a centralized network to a distributed one. In regard to the matter, Hoskinson stated: “This is like Ripple changing its consensus protocol. […] No cryptocurrency has really done this to this scale after they’ve rolled out.”

Over the last few years, a couple of developer teams working for Input Output HK, the parent body overseeing Cardano’s activities that is commonly referred to as IOHK, have been concentrating their efforts on developing two unique versions of the project’s staking protocol: a Byron-derived approach, which is currently live, and a “Haskell”-based Shelley system. In Hoskinson’s own words, the Shelley transition will most likely be completed by the first week of July.

Providing his insights on the matter, Bakyt Azimkanov, the director of global communications and marketing for the Cardano Foundation, told Cointelegraph that following the recent Byron reboot, the Cardano team has shifted to transitioning the Byron codebase to the Shelley protocol. He added that the process is being carried out in two phases: Testnet 1 for friends and family (around 20 top-performing stake pools, i.e., pioneers) and Testnet 2 for the general public.

“Shelley is being developed with an assurance that requires us to use a thorough testing approach. The protocol will serve as the springboard for transactions of the 21st century.”

What is Shelley?

Cardano’s team told Cointelegraph that Shelley is basically one of the five development phases related to the project. In this regard, Shelley will look to build upon the sound foundation laid by “Byron,” thus setting the stage for future eras and functionalities. However, as pointed out earlier, the ultimate aim of this latest upgrade will be to make the Cardano ecosystem completely autonomous by decentralizing the platform’s internal operational activities.

In terms of how Shelley will deliver on its promise of decentralization, the team hopes that it will ensure that individuals who own ADA, regardless of the quantity possessed, can participate within the Cardano ecosystem because of the proof-of-stake system that is already being used by the currency. Additionally, by delegating their stake, token holders will have full freedom to participate and run the network.

Furthermore, the update will allow ADA holders to come together and form stake pools. Not only that, but it will also provide monetary incentives to stakeholders so that they follow the protocol as well as set up the required infrastructure for running nodes in a smooth and seamless manner. On the subject, Azimkanov pointed…