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Features

Most Influential 2021: Charles Hoskinson

Cardano’s founder brought smart contracts to one of the largest “Ethereum killers” this year.

By CoinDesk Staff
AccessTimeIconDec 8, 2021 at 5:24 p.m. UTC
Updated May 11, 2023 at 6:26 p.m. UTC
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(Adam B. Levine/Pixelmind.ai)
(Adam B. Levine/Pixelmind.ai)
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Just like his co-founder Gavin Wood, Charles Hoskinson went on to do his own thing after developing Ethereum. With Cardano, which hit an all-time high in August this year and currently stands at a $44 billion market capitalization, Hoskinson aimed to develop a more scalable, secure and efficient alternative to Ethereum. Cardano was at some point the “third coin” in cryptocurrency, the rotating coin that is the third biggest by market capitalization after bitcoin and ethereum and thus, in some respects, the one that competes most closely with them.

The Complete List: CoinDesk’s Most Influential 2021

Ardana, a stablecoin and lending hub built on Cardano, recently raised $10 million to build a cross-chain bridge between Cardano and Near protocol. But Hoskinson’s greatest accomplishment might be bringing smart contract functionality to Cardano.

(Kevin Ross/CoinDesk)
(Kevin Ross/CoinDesk)


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