Key Notes
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson announced the release of a transparency report that vindicates ADA redemptions.
According to the BDO-backed audit, 99.2% of the ADA vouchers ended up being redeemed.
Also, there were no hints of a deliberate blocking of ADA redemptions.
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson feels vindicated after the release of the ADA audit report showing that the protocol was not involved in any redemption fraud. EMURGO shared a link to the transparency report that revealed Masato Alexander wrongly accused Hoskinson and the Cardano network.
What the Cardano Audit Found
Hoskinson notified the Cardano community and the general public of the release of the transparency report, which involved accounting firm BDO and law firm McDermott Will & Emery, on September 3.
As he initially argued, 99.2% of the ADA vouchers ended up being redeemed. This is equivalent to a total of 14,282 vouchers, which summed up to 25.85 billion ADA coin.
It is worth noting that Cardano was also accused of selling ADA to elderly people. However, the audit also found that only about 6.1% of buyers were older than 65 at the time.
In addition, no deliberate effort was made towards blocking redemptions, as propagated by Masato Alexander. Ultimately, Joel Telpner, Chief Legal Officer at Input Output, noted that the forensic audit has determined that there was no basis for the aforementioned accusations.
No Basis for Cardano and Hoskinson Accusations
According to the audit, there was no evidence of fraud or misuse found in Cardano. Therefore, it nullifies the latest “FUD” narrative related to the ADA cryptocurrency.
EMURGO shared the link to the report on X, citing that it is pleased to see that the full Investigative Report and Forensic Audit regarding the ADA Voucher redemptions have been published.
“The Investigation determined that each of the allegations related to the Topics of Investigation do not have any basis,” the report stated, vindicating Hoskinson and his firm.
It was a good opportunity for EMURGO to reiterate its confidence in the Cardano blockchain.
Pleased to see the full Investigative Report and Forensic Audit regarding the ADA Voucher redemptions has been released in support of @IOHK_Charles and @InputOutputHK.
The report states, "The Investigation determined that each of the allegations related to the Topics of… https://t.co/g7lowsyXwj
— EMURGO (@emurgo_io) September 4, 2025
The platform claimed that the third-party audit has been instrumental in further validating its trust and confidence in the network. Going forward, the entity noted that it hopes “this public release will lay to rest any further allegations.”
Full Picture of the Cardano Controversy
Trouble started for Cardano in May when Non-fungible Token (NFT) artist Masato Alexander claimed that Charles Hoskinson had manipulated the Cardano ledger with the help of a “genesis key.”
Based on his strong accusation, the Cardano founder intended to seize a total of 318 million unredeemed ADA.
Noteworthy, these assets were worth approximately $600 million. Initially, the said coins were put up for sale as digital vouchers during the presale that was held in Japan. With the help of digital vouchers, early buyers successfully redeemed their tokens. It was on this premise that ADA insiders were accused of misusing coins that should have gone to voucher holders.
Related article: Cardano Sentiment Turns Bearish but ADA Still Attractive for Dip Buyers
Notably, blockchain upgrades allegedly made it difficult to redeem the vouchers. At first, Hoskinson made a case, vehemently denying any misuse of the coins. He made it clear that 99.8% of the ADA vouchers were redeemed whiłe the remaining 0.2% were then redirected to the treasury. In his defense, the accusations were damaging and deeply personal.
This eventually led Cardano to push for an independent audit that reviewed its transactions and has now vindicated Hoskinson and Input Output Global.
