Cardano Foundation and Draper Dragon to Launch Info Action for $80M Cardano Ecosystem Fund (“DDC Fund”)
Cardano is positioned to lead the next phase of blockchain adoption, providing real-world utility, sustainable revenue generation, and enterprise-grade infrastructure.
To accelerate this growth in line with the proposed Cardano 2030 Vision, Mission, Strategy Framework and KPIs, the Cardano Foundation is supporting Draper Dragon and Draper University in proposing an info action to create a US$80M fund focused on scaling Cardano adoption over at least 6 years and paying returns back to the Cardano treasury. The proposal targets venture-style returns benchmarked to institutional Blockchain & Crypto VC funds, with a structure that aims to return capital and provide upside to the Cardano Treasury and is paired with public reporting and dashboards so the community can track performance against these targets over time.
The proposal contributes to the maturing of Cardano’s funding landscape and rests on three pillars:
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Direct Investments: Backs high-potential startups - from accelerator graduates to pre-Series A teams - to expand Cardano’s capabilities, providing strategic access to Tier 1 exchanges and institutional networks.
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Growth Capital: Drives ecosystem utility through global marketing, liquidity provisions, and exchange intros, while powering an in-house venture studio for dedicated technical guidance.
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Educational Support: Strengthens the talent pipeline via a Growth Accelerator and Hacker House, helping developers launch RWA, DeFi, and enterprise solutions through mentorship and residency.
Details on the full proposal and an FAQ are below and we welcome comments and questions until 20th January 2026, after which the Info Action will be submitted to Mainnet.
Two AMA’s including both CF and Draper Dragon teams will take place on 19th January 2026 at 9:00 CET and 17:00 CET.
Cardano x Draper Dragon: Ecosystem Fund
Overview
Cardano is positioned to lead the next phase of blockchain adoption, focused on real-world utility, sustainable revenue generation, and enterprise-grade infrastructure. To accelerate this growth, Draper Dragon and Draper University in collaboration with the Cardano Foundation (“Foundation”) propose the Cardano x Draper Dragon Ecosystem Fund (“DDC Fund”). The DDC Fund is a targeted $80M USD fund aimed at scaling Cardano adoption while driving measurable returns to the Cardano Treasury (“Treasury”).
The goals of this proposal (“Proposal”) are straightforward and ambitious: Deliver a return multiple back to the Treasury; make Cardano self-sustaining while increasing the ecosystem’s total value locked (“TVL”), on-chain activity, and developer participation; and transform the Treasury from a passive reserve into an active growth engine that compounds Cardano ecosystem value.
Draper Dragon will manage and administer the DDC Fund, as described in more detail below. A special purpose vehicle (“SPV”) based in the Cayman Islands will be created to act as a limited partner (“LP”) facing the DDC Fund. This SPV will act solely for the economic benefit of the Treasury. The Foundation will play a supporting role in this Proposal. The Foundation will orchestrate the setup of the SPV and will act as proposal administrator for purposes of the Cardano constitution (see details below). The Foundation will also support both Draper Dragon and Draper University with ecosystem and technical know-how, as required. The Proposal endeavours to balance the legitimate accountability and transparency expectations of the Cardano community (the “Community”) with the confidentiality requirements of operating a venture fund, as described in more detail below.
Assuming the DDC Fund is successful, the DDC Fund will pay the invested capital and the applicable returns back to the Treasury. The detailed mechanics are set out below. The Foundation will not profit economically from this arrangement, as its mission lies in the development of Cardano and adoption of the Cardano blockchain.
This budget info action proposes a total withdrawal from the Treasury of $75M over a period of 6 years or 438 epochs, broken down into three tranches. The first tranche will amount to a fixed $15M. The target for the second and third tranches will be $30M each. Withdrawals can be adjusted based on market conditions. In any event, the total amount of ADA to be withdrawn is capped at ADA 175M over a period of 6 years or 438 epochs (with possible extensions of the base 6 year term for up to 2 additional years). The $5M balance to reach the targeted total fund size of $80M will be raised from qualified outside investors, proving the value proposition of Cardano investments to a larger audience.
This Proposal contains a detailed rationale below, including information on the proposed fund structure, repayment model, example returns, fund management, fund expenses, fund manager profiles, and legal disclaimers.
Motivation
Cardano’s technically sophisticated eUTXO architecture, leading staking mechanism, and on-chain governance system provides the foundation for institutional DeFi and Real-World Assets. Yet a dedicated, professional ecosystem fund is needed to exponentially accelerate developer talent, onboard enterprises, and establish the network as the global compliance-first standard.
The purpose of the DDC Fund is to generate measurable returns to the Treasury and to the external limited partners (“eLPs”) while establishing Cardano as the leading institutionally adopted blockchain. Draper Dragon, Draper University, and the Foundation aim to achieve this purpose by increasing on-chain activity, growing the TVL, expanding developer participation, and improving other core ecosystem metrics.
Rationale
1. Executive Summary
This Proposal is for the establishment of the DDC Fund by Draper Dragon and Draper University with the aim to withdraw three tranches of funding from the Treasury, for a total target capital of $75M total over six years.
The first tranche will amount to a fixed $15M. The target for the second and third tranches will be $30M each. Withdrawals can be adjusted depending on the market situation. In any event, the total withdrawals are capped at ADA 175M. The majority of returns will be used to repay the Treasury. The DDC Fund aims to procure additional funding of up to $5M from eLPs.
An SPV based in the Cayman Islands will be created to act as an LP facing the DDC Fund. This SPV will act solely for the economic benefit of the Treasury. This Proposal will be implemented with the support of the Foundation, which will act as the constitutional administrator and know-how provider.
2. DDC Fund: Objectives
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Return capital to the Treasury and eLPs. Target of ~3x gross multiple on invested capital and a 25 %+ internal rate of return, aiming to support both ecosystem growth and financial returns, thus strengthening the Treasury’s sustainability and long-term self-funding capacity. *Target derived from institutional benchmarks for Blockchain & Crypto VC funds (Figures sourced from Cambridge Associates as of June 30, 2025; see Figure 6). Projections are illustrative only and are not guarantees of future performance. All investments involve risk and actual results may vary. See Section 13 (Legal Disclaimer) for additional information.
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Increase Cardano’s on-chain revenue, application usage, and stablecoin market cap through capital deployment and ecosystem integrations. Over the duration of the DDC Fund, the ambition is to contribute to Cardano TVL increases from the current $300M to $3B+, led by RWA ($1.5B+) and DeFi ($1.5B+).
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Fill the post‑grant (e.g., Project Catalyst, Builder DAO, etc.) capital gap for builders while onboarding institutions and add to the roster of native Cardano companies.
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Accelerate fundamentally strong projects within strong verticals such as real‑world asset (“RWA”) protocols, stablecoins, institutional DeFi, and compliance‑ready dApps. Over the duration of the DDC Fund, the ambition is to grow the RWA sector by adding to the deployed protocols on Cardano that are revenue-generating, building liquidity channels linked to RWAs with stablecoins, and DeFi markets.
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Attract and retain high‑quality developers through both capital and non-financial support. Over the duration of the DDC Fund, the ambition is to achieve 7x the monthly active developers by implementing an in-house venture studio model to decrease onboarding friction and lower barriers of entry for developers.
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Educate, train, and shape new and existing developers into entrepreneurs.
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Bridge the adoption gap by guiding teams to view their growth as part of Cardano’s larger narrative, leaving a lasting infrastructure, services, and precedents for future projects.
As TVL increases and the ecosystem grows, development activity should rise, and more RWAs should be tokenized on Cardano. A new generation of builders focused on scaling the blockchain is expected to emerge. All in all, this should lead to more active protocols, steady application-level revenue, and greater ecosystem visibility.
3. DDC Fund: Operational Structure
The operational and governance structure of the DDC Fund is as follows:
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Cardano x Draper Dragon Ecosystem Fund GP, LLC: Manager of the DDC Fund (“General Partner” or “GP”).
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A special purpose vehicle based in the Cayman Islands: Created to act as an LP facing the DDC Fund. This SPV will act solely for the economic benefit of the Treasury.
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Cardano Foundation: Constitutional administrator of this Proposal and ecosystem and technical know-how provider to Draper Dragon and Draper University. The Foundation is not responsible for and has no role in managing the DDC Fund or taking investments.
4. DDC Fund: Profit Distribution
Assuming that the DDC Fund returns a profit after costs, the distribution of such profits will follow the waterfall model as set forth below.
Before the GP receives any returns from the DDC Fund with respect to the SPV, the GP, acting upon the instructions of the SPV as LP, will return to the Treasury an amount equal to the sum of the aggregate capital deployed for Direct Investments and Growth Capital (the “Preference Amount”; see detailed breakdown below in Section 7.1 and 7.2, respectively).
For example, if $50M of the contributed capital is used towards direct investments into portfolio companies and $11.5M of the contributed capital is spent on Growth Capital, then $61.5M in the aggregate would be returned to the Treasury before any further distributions occur. After the Preference Amount is distributed, the DDC Fund’s remaining net profit (the “Net Profit”) is split between the SPV as LP, acting for the benefit of the Treasury, and the GP at a ratio of 80% and 20%, respectively. For example, if the SPV owns ca. 90% of the DDC Fund (alongside the eLPs), about 72% of all Net Profits would flow back to the Treasury.
The eLPs would receive similar distributions, except that an eLP is expected to receive its full contributed capital before the GP receives any returns from the DDC Fund with respect to such eLP.
To the extent that any proceeds are available to the DDC Fund for distribution and before all capital is returned as specified herein, the GP may, in its sole and absolute discretion, make distributions to the GP and LPs of DDC Fund in amounts to permit the GP and LPs to pay taxes owed on profits allocated by the DDC Fund (“Tax Distributions”). These Tax Distributions would be treated as advances on distributions owed to the GP and LPs, and would thus reduce future distributions under the profits distribution waterfall.
The Preference Amount and share of the Net Profits are expected to be paid directly into the Treasury by the GP, acting upon the instructions of the SPV as LP. If direct repayment is not possible for legal, regulatory, or technical reasons (e.g., Treasury mechanisms have been changed by the Cardano governance processes in the interim) at such a time as distributions are made, this will be publicly disclosed and an alternative solution found; however, it will not affect the amount returned to the Treasury.
5. DDC Fund: Terms, Caps, and Management
The GP intends to manage the DDC Fund, with an affiliate of the GP, DAF Management Company III, LLC, to serve as the investment adviser to the DDC Fund (the “Adviser”). The Adviser is an exempt reporting adviser regulated by the Securities Exchange Commission.
DDC Fund Term & Capital: The DDC Fund will have a 6 year term plus two optional 1 year extensions, which are each at the sole discretion of the GP. The LPs, including the SPV, acting for the economic benefit of the Treasury, are intended to commit a total of $80M to the DDC Fund. With respect to the SPV, the commitments to satisfy the capital calls will be split into a first tranche fixed at $15M in year one and a second and third tranche at $30M each in years two and four, respectively. The withdrawals are intended to be variable so that they can be adjusted, depending on the market situation, and the DDC Fund may reduce or increase the capital call. This may result in withdrawals of up to a cap of $40M USD in a year, but subject always to the applicable caps as set out below. Such an increase or decrease would then in turn decrease or increase the further tranches. The GP may also defer any capital call for up to six months. All capital call commitments by the SPV are conditional upon successful Treasury withdrawal governance actions.
DDC Fund Caps: Irrespective of any market developments, this budget info action foresees an aggregate cap for any resulting Treasury withdrawals of 175M ADA over the base 6 year term of the DDC Fund (“Aggregate Cap”). To ensure the NCL planning can happen with certainty, the Treasury withdrawal governance actions for the three tranches are in turn, capped at 50M ADA for the first tranche, and 85M ADA for the second and third tranches (each a “Tranche Cap”), always subject to the Aggregate Cap. These caps will not be exceeded by any Treasury withdrawal governance action unless an additional budget info action is approved first to supplement this budget info action.
DDC Fund Contributions: Upon a successful Treasury withdrawal governance action, the Treasury will contribute ADA to the GP to hold in trust for the SPV. To reduce risk, limit market volatility, and ensure that fund operations and investments continue regardless of ADA market conditions, the GP, in its sole discretion, intends to (i) engage a third party to convert ADA to USD or stablecoins, and/or (ii) hold ADA and/or such other assets, in each case, as necessary or convenient; provided, that the GP will contribute USD and/or stablecoins to the DDC Fund on the SPV’s behalf as soon as it determines the best conditions to do so. The DDC Fund expects to enter into a side letter with the SPV to set forth certain supplemental terms and the process for the return of funds to the Treasury. This side letter shall be made publicly available to the Community.
6. DDC Fund: Contingencies
6.1 ADA Price Fluctuation
The Tranche Cap is inclusive of a 20% buffer to manage the risk of ADA price fluctuations.
For example, if the ADA price is above $0.40 at the time of the Treasury withdrawal for any tranche, less than the applicable Tranche Cap will be needed to procure the requisite USD amount for the capital call. However, due to the duration of the Treasury withdrawal voting process, there is a risk that the ADA price may fall or rise between submission of the Treasury withdrawal governance action and the ADA being received by the DDC Fund.
To mitigate this, the Treasury withdrawal for any tranche will be made at the ADA to USD price on the day of submission plus a 20% buffer, but never in excess of the Tranche Cap. If the ADA to USD price remains stable or even rises above the conversion rate at the time when funds are paid from the Treasury to the DDC Fund, then the excess will be applied by the GP to reduce the capital call for the next tranche. If the ADA price falls between submission of the Treasury withdrawal and payment of the funds to the DDC Fund, then the buffer will absorb the first 20% of any shortfall. If the buffer is insufficient and the capital call is not met in full, a subsequent top-up Treasury withdrawal governance action to make up the difference may be submitted, or the GP may defer the remaining capital call until market conditions improve or add the shortfall to the second tranche capital call. In any event, neither the Tranche Cap nor the Aggregate Cap will ever be exceeded.
Example ADA Price Rises: If the ADA price is $1 at the first tranche submission, the withdrawal request will be for 18M ADA. This represents the $15M capital call converted to 15M ADA, plus the 20% buffer of 3M ADA. If ADA remains at $1 when the Treasury withdrawal is enacted and paid into the DDC Fund, the 18M ADA will be worth $18M. This $3M surplus will reduce the second tranche capital call from $30M to $27M. If the ADA price rises to $2 when the Treasury withdrawal is enacted, the 18M ADA will be worth $36M. The resulting $21M surplus will reduce the second tranche capital call from $30M to $9M.
Example ADA Price Falls: If the ADA price is $0.40 at the first tranche submission, the withdrawal request will be for 45M ADA. This represents the $15M capital call converted to 37.5M ADA, plus a 20% buffer of 7.5M ADA. If ADA remains at $0.40 when the Treasury withdrawal is enacted and paid into the DDC Fund, the 45M ADA will be worth $18M. This $3M surplus will reduce the second tranche capital call from $30M to $27M. If the ADA price drops to $0.30 when the Treasury withdrawal is enacted and paid into the DDC Fund, the 45M ADA will be worth $13.5M. The resulting $1.5M shortfall compared to the capital call will either be submitted as a top-up Treasury withdrawal request, deferred by the GP until market conditions improve, or added to the second tranche capital call.
If the GP defers a capital contribution for six months due to market conditions, and if the ADA price has not improved by the end of the GP’s six month deferral period, the GP will, after consultation with the SPV, decide how to adapt the strategy of the DDC Fund. This may include, but is not limited to, seeking an additional budget info action and subsequent treasury withdrawal, restructuring the withdrawals (up to the caps), seeking other eLPs to close the funding gap or scaling back on deployment of funds.
6.2 Treasury Withdrawal Governance Action Unsuccessful or Impossible
In scenarios where a Treasury withdrawal does not pass the required thresholds for approval, the SPV and the GP will assess the reasons for the failure and decide whether to proceed with a resubmission to correct any issue that may have caused the voting shortfall.
If the Treasury withdrawal is not possible due to NCL restrictions or if there is no credible path to a successful Treasury withdrawal at a given time, the GP will, after consultation with the SPV, the Foundation, and the Community, decide how to adapt the strategy for the DDC Fund. This may include, but is not limited to, restructuring the withdrawals (up to the applicable cap), seeking other eLPs to close the funding gap or scaling back on deployment of funds. In extreme circumstances as further detailed below, the DDC Fund may proceed to wind-down operations (see Section 6.4).
6.3 Failure to Raise eLP Capital
If the targeted amount of eLP capital is not achieved, the DDC Fund expects to reduce the capital deployed towards direct investments accordingly.
6.4 Fund Termination
After the end of the term, the DDC Fund will be terminated and wound down in a controlled process. Likewise, if at least three successive Treasury withdrawals fail to pass within a calendar year, the GP may, at its sole discretion, terminate and wind down the DDC Fund.
Following termination of the DDC Fund, the GP will focus on liquidating the DDC Fund’s assets. In so doing, the GP will apply the following principles:
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Utilize a structured wind-down consistent with professional portfolio management.
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Sell or otherwise liquidate assets consistent with maximizing value to the DDC Fund and its LPs (including the SPV, acting for the Treasury’s economic benefit).
7. DDC Fund: Capital Deployment Breakdown
The deployment of the $75M to be withdrawn from the Treasury breaks down into the following categories across the base 6 year term of the DDC Fund.
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Direct Investments: $50M
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Growth Capital: $11.5M
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Educational Support: $6M
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SPV Administration Expenses: $0.3M
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Direct Fund Expenses:
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Management Fee: $6M
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Customary Expenses & Fees: $1.2M
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The figures above reflect the base 6-year term of the DDC Fund. If the GP exercises its extension rights of up to two years (which can be beneficial in order to allow additional time for portfolio companies to mature, complete exits, or maximize returns), additional expenses will likely be required to continue fund operations and is expected to be drawn from Direct Investments. These include management fees, audit, and tax preparation costs, legal expenses, and other standard fund costs as outlined in Direct Fund Expenses below (see Sections 7.5 and 7.6). Unused amounts from any fund expenses category will be allocated back towards Direct Investments.
Total Treasury deployment will not exceed $75M under any circumstances, and all adjustments will be communicated transparently to the Community.
7.1 Direct Investments
Funds in this category are expected to support startups and projects capable of expanding Cardano’s capabilities through direct investments. This provides value add from day one of the DDC Fund’s operation through improved Tier 1 exchange access, institutional networks, technical expertise, accelerator infrastructure, and reputational capital.
Anticipated Investment Stage Breakdown:
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Roughly one third for Post-Accelerator: Fund Draper University cohort graduates with proven product-market fit.
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Roughly one third for Pre-Seed: Back exceptional founding teams in $100M+ markets with Cardano architecture advantage.
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Roughly a quarter for Seed: Support growth-phase companies with clear revenue paths and proven user adoption.
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Roughly a sixth for Pre-Series A: Bridge mature projects to institutional rounds with strong financial metrics.
Any unused funds from Growth Capital, Educational Support, SPV Administration Expenses or Direct Fund Expenses is also expected to roll over into this deployable pool. This ensures capital is consistently directed where it creates the greatest impact. Draper Dragon may also co-invest capital from its existing funds alongside the DDC Fund deals (regulatory restrictions prevent direct investment into the DDC Fund by its own managed funds).
7.2 Growth Capital
Funds in this category are intended for ecosystem growth initiatives, which are supported by the GP, the Adviser, Draper University, and other affiliates. These funds are expected to target both existing Cardano projects and new opportunities that expand the ecosystem’s reach and utility. Examples include exchange introductions, global marketing campaigns, media placements, deployment support through in-house Cardano experts for technical guidance, intros within/outside Cardano for TVL and usage growth, market maker and liquidity provider introductions, conferences, mentorship, and open source contributions.
These funds are intended to be deployed in two tranches:
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An affiliate of the Adviser and/or the GP intends to utilize ca. $1M annually for its in-house venture studio, led by experienced developers and technical mentors to assist in product development support, technical guidance for Cardano integrations, and early market validation.
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Draper University intends to utilize the remaining ca. $1M of the capital towards scaling and support for post-accelerator projects.
7.3 Educational Support
Funds in this category are intended for educational initiatives. The goal is to strengthen the talent pipeline and expand the global Cardano founder base. The two annual programs outlined below will make up the majority of this category. The DDC Fund may take small equity positions in participating startups through the Investment category (see “Direct Investments” in Section 7.1) in exchange for the support.
Program 1: Growth Accelerator
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10-week Silicon Valley accelerator for 10 investor-ready companies
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Up to $70K investment targeting 3.5% equity
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Full residency + optional 4-week extension
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Focus: RWA, Institutional DeFi, Enterprise Solutions
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Demo Day for institutional investors
Program 2: Hacker House
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4-week intensive for 15 early-stage teams
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Up to $20K investment targeting 2% equity
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Full residency + optional 4-week extension
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Educate developers into entrepreneurs
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Pitch Day for angels and early-stage VCs
7.4 SPV Administration Expenses
Funds in this category are intended to cover the customary expenses of keeping the SPV operational and in good standing in order to act as the LP for the benefit of the Treasury. This includes but is not limited to registered office and secretary fees, director fees (insofar as directors are independent professionals that require remuneration), supervisor fees, and general legal costs.
7.5 Direct Fund Expenses: Management Fees
Funds in this category are intended to cover the operating expenses of the GP and/or the Adviser, which includes, without limitation, salaries for employees, due diligence work and valuations (e.g., technical and market reviews), and advisory support (e.g., mentorship and founder support). Management fees are separate from other Direct Fund Expenses described in Section 7.6 (see “Direct Fund Expenses: Customary Expenses & Fees”).
7.6 Direct Fund Expenses: Customary Expenses & Fees
Funds in this category are intended to cover customary expenses of the DDC Fund that are not otherwise covered in the other categories. For example, this would include, without limitation, organizational and syndication expenses, audit costs, legal, tax, and compliance costs, wind-down expenses, and indemnification of GP personnel if they are sued by third parties in connection with their duties at the DDC Fund. This category will be paid to third parties and will not be paid to the GP, the Adviser, Draper University, or any of their respective affiliates, without the prior consent of the SPV. The expenses in this section will be capped at $300,000 annually.
8. External Limited Partners (eLPs)
In addition to the $75M from Treasury withdrawals, the DDC Fund intends to raise up to $5M from eLPs to expand institutional participation. This additional capital will be raised independently by the GP and is expected to strengthen the DDC Fund’s strategic network.
These eLPs will be strategic, accredited investors aligned with Cardano’s long-term vision, drawn from:
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Bitcoin and UTXO-native institutional capital (e.g., family offices, crypto hedge funds, and DeFi foundations exploring cross-chain initiatives between Bitcoin and Cardano).
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Strategic individuals who meet accredited-investor standards and contribute domain expertise, institutional networks, or regulatory experience.
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Digital asset infrastructure investors and custodial/payment platforms focused on Bitcoin–Cardano interoperability, stablecoin infrastructure, and RWA integration.
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Layer-1 and DeFi ecosystem funds that seek exposure to institutional-grade growth on Cardano through a professionally managed, transparent venture structure.
Upon the DDC Fund’s initial close, capital will be called from all LPs, including from the SPV and any eLPs, so that the DDC Fund can commence operations immediately. For the SPV, this means that once the first Treasury withdrawal tranche is approved, those funds will be used to meet the SPV’s first capital call from the DDC Fund. Investments, educational programs, and growth initiatives can begin on day one. To the extent that the full $5M allocation for eLPs has not been fulfilled at the DDC Fund’s initial close, the DDC Fund expects to continue to raise additional capital from eLPs.
eLPs will generally pay all expenses and receive a portion of profits corresponding to their proportionate share of the capital commitments of the DDC Fund, provided that the expenses related to Growth Capital, Educational Support, and SPV Administration shall not be charged to the eLPs. Growth Capital and Educational Support expenses shall also not be included for purposes of calculating partnership percentages.
9. Transparency, Oversight & Reporting
Transparency, oversight, and accountability are core to this DDC Fund’s operation. A public dashboard built by Draper Dragon is expected to display real-time ecosystem KPIs (e.g., TVL growth, on-chain usage, and network revenue growth, user adoption and retention across portfolio projects, new strategic partnerships within the ecosystem, developer onboarding and ecosystem engagement, open-source tooling, and public goods contributions). A longer-term goal is also to provide on-chain verifications of fund data.
Additional disclosures will be provided through a public Quarterly Fund Report that will cover ecosystem metrics since inception, a portfolio overview, educational program updates, and the strategic focus for the next quarter, fulfilling the mandate for apparent oversight. A Quarterly Ecosystem Roundtable and Investment AMAs will complement the written transparency initiatives.
Certain portfolio information, such as deal terms, valuations, or ongoing transactions, are confidential information and must remain private. Some of these details will only be shared with the LPs (as set forth in the definitive legal agreements, such as the limited partnership agreement and subscription agreements, which include the “Risk Factors” set forth therein; collectively, “Agreements”), and subject to any side letters by and between the DDC Fund and any LPs. This allows for as much community transparency as possible while protecting the DDC Fund from regulatory, legal, and competition risks. These confidentiality guardrails are standard for regulated venture funds and protect the DDC Fund and its portfolio companies. All public disclosures will continue to focus on verified on-chain metrics and ecosystem-level results without compromising sensitive information.
10. SPV Rationale and Governance
To ensure the repayment of any future returns of the DDC Fund to the Treasury, this Proposal foresees the creation of an SPV. The SPV will be ownerless and have no other function than to act as an LP to the DDC Fund (and possibly similar arrangements in the future) for the economic interest of the Treasury. After exploring a number of possible jurisdictions and legal structures, a foundation based in the Cayman Islands came out as the clear best option based on the flexibility of its structure and its compatibility and recognition within the fund market. Apart from the usual functions required by the Cayman Islands regulations (e.g., Supervisor, Secretary, etc.) the SPV is foreseen to initially have three directors (the “SPV Directors”), one independent, one from the Foundation and one from the Community (the “SPV Community Director”) (see outline of intended selection process below). Additional Directors may be appointed in the future.
11. Community Oversight
One of Cardano’s greatest strengths is its engaged community. The DDC Fund plans to build on that foundation by marrying extensive public disclosures and community oversight with professional fund management. The goal is to allow for informed community decision making while ensuring accountability, transparency, and alignment with Cardano’s ecosystem growth.
Community SPV Director
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The SPV plans on using a public nomination and voting process for the Community SPV Director role that allows for direct Cardano community participation (subject to certain minimal requirements).
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The Community SPV Director will have all the same rights, insights and obligations as the other SPV Directors.
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At the discretion of the GP, each of the SPV Directors may be asked to sign NDAs to receive extended fund information while maintaining confidentiality.
Building in the Open
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The DDC Fund will provide opportunities for the Cardano community to discuss fund performance, project milestones, and strategic direction.
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Participant profiles and curriculum outlines for the educational support programs will be published for public feedback.
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Ecosystem impact projections will form part of the selection processes.
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Pitch sessions and demo days will be held live via Zoom webinars whenever feasible so that the Cardano community can directly observe educational outcomes.
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Governance and feedback workshops will be held both virtually and in person in Silicon Valley.
12. Profile & Team
Draper Dragon
Founded in 2006, Draper Dragon is the leading digital asset focused fund within the Draper network and a leader in Web3 investments. The team brings deep expertise across blockchain ecosystems, especially UTXO-based environments, alongside a strong fundraising track record, including investments such as Ledger, Gemini, EtherFi, Centrifuge, and more.
Building on the successful completion of the Cardano Founders Residency Program at Draper University in Q1 2025, Draper Dragon partnered with Draper University to launch a dedicated Cardano ecosystem fund. With over 19+ years of venture capital experience and a history of managing multiple ecosystem funds, this partnership combines Draper Dragon’s disciplined investment approach with Draper University’s proven accelerator platform creating a pathway to deliver sustainable and scalable growth to the Cardano ecosystem through professional investment management and comprehensive entrepreneurial development.
Draper University
Tim Draper, legendary Silicon Valley venture capitalist, founded Draper University (“DU”) in 2012 with a vision to change the world we must change education. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley in downtown San Mateo, DU teaches entrepreneurship globally through hands-on training, innovative curriculum, and thought leadership, bringing together young participants, startup founders, executives, and investors under one roof.
DU’s educational philosophy centers on experiential learning and cultural immersion, creating what participants describe as a melting pot of cultures, ideas, and dreams. With over 5,000 alumni from 103 countries, more than 3,500 startups launched, and $1+ billion raised in venture capital, the program delivers intensive, immersive experiences that blend theoretical entrepreneurship education with practical startup-building exercises.
DU’s proven blockchain expertise includes successful programs with Algorand, Tezos, VeChain, and Stellar ecosystems. Notable achievements include $17.5 million in commitments on Algorand Demo Day with 8 startups raising over $1 million each, and producing Web3 unicorns Highstreet and Lemon Cash.
In partnership with the extended Draper network, 10+ years of success have shown:
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Experience: 400+ companies backed, 50+ unicorns, decades of investment experience.
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Supporting Leaders Web3 and Beyond: Early investments across the extended Draper network include Coinbase, Ledger, Gemini, VeChain, Baidu, Tesla, Skype, Robinhood, Hotmail, EtherFi ($8.98B~ TVL), Veda ($1.81B~ TVL), Kernel ($1.15B~ TVL), Centrifuge ($1.27B~ TVL), Coinflow, and more. *(TVL figures sourced from DeFiLlama as of January 12, 2026.)
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Exchange and Wallet Partners: Coinbase, Binance, OKX, ByBit, BitGet, KuCoin, Gate, MEXC CoinDCX, GMO Coin, Ledger, Xverse, Zengo, Privy, WalletConnect, and more.
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Developer Pipeline: Global talent funnel spanning 100+ nations; direct integration with developer communities across major L1/L2 ecosystems and a worldwide network of alumni-led ventures for rapid talent scouting.
13. Disclaimers
This Proposal and related materials do not constitute an offer or solicitation to purchase limited partnership interests in the DDC Fund or any related vehicle. This Proposal is in no way complete and is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to the Agreements, copies of which will be provided to any prospective investor upon request and which should be reviewed for complete information concerning the rights, privileges, and obligations of investors in the DDC Fund. Neither the DDC Fund nor the GP has been formed yet, but they shall be formed prior to the effectiveness of any Agreements.
This Proposal contains certain information about Draper Dragon and its previous venture capital funds and other investments, Draper University, and the extended network. In considering the information contained in this Proposal about the past performance of any prior fund or any personal investments of or affiliated with the GP, managing director, or any of their respective affiliates, prospective investors should bear in mind that past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results, and there can be no assurance that such prior performance will be maintained or that the DDC Fund will match such prior performance. There can be no assurance that the DDC Fund will achieve results comparable to those of such previous Draper Dragon funds or that actual realized returns will not differ from estimated unrealized returns. This Proposal also contains certain forward-looking statements and projections regarding the future performance and asset allocation of the DDC Fund. These projections are included for illustrative purposes only, are inherently speculative as they relate to future events, and may not be realized as described. These forward-looking statements will not be updated in the future.
No assurance can be given that the DDC Fund will achieve its investment objectives. The DDC Fund is suitable only for sophisticated, well-informed investors who have no need for liquidity in this investment and who have other adequate means of providing for their annual needs and contingencies. Prospective investors should make their own investigation and evaluation of an investment in the DDC Fund, and should not construe the contents of this Proposal as legal, tax, investment, or accounting advice. Each prospective investor should consult its own attorneys, business advisors, and tax advisors as to legal, business, tax, and other related matters concerning an investment in the DDC Fund. Each prospective investor should determine independently whether an investment in the DDC Fund is suitable for that investor in light of the investor’s own personal circumstances.
DDC FAQ
Who controls investment decisions?
The GP, a Draper Dragon entity, manages and controls the investment decisions of the DDC Fund. The Adviser, an affiliate of the GP, provides advice and due diligence support as to the investments of the DDC Fund.
What is the Cardano Foundation’s role in this proposal?
The Foundation is expected to (i) orchestrate the setup of the special purpose vehicle (“SPV”) that will act as LP to the DDC Fund in the interest of the Treasury, (ii) act as administrator pursuant to the Cardano constitution, and (iii) provide ecosystem/technical know-how as needed. The Foundation does not manage the DDC Fund or make investment decisions, and will not profit economically from the arrangement.
How is the community involved after DDC Fund approval?
Community involvement is structured around transparency (e.g., public reporting, dashboard, AMAs/roundtables, etc.) and SPV-level oversight, including a Community SPV Director selected via a public nomination/voting process. The Community SPV Director is intended to have the same rights/obligations as other directors in the SPV.
How does this directly benefit the Cardano community and Treasury?
The DDC Fund is designed to (i) help position the Treasury as a self-sustaining capital vehicle by recycling returns back into the Treasury, and (ii) catalyze durable ecosystem growth by backing high-impact Cardano-native projects. Capital is focused on priority verticals, including RWA, stablecoins, institutional-grade DeFi, and compliance-ready applications.
How does the DDC Fund respond to ADA price fluctuation? What happens if the price crashes?
Each withdrawal tranche includes a 20% buffer and is capped. If ADA rises, excess value is intended to reduce later capital calls; if ADA falls, the buffer absorbs the first 20% shortfall, and the GP may defer future capital calls, seek a top-up governance action, or adjust subsequent tranches.
How is success measured? What happens if the DDC Fund underperforms?
Success is intended to be measured by a combination of (i) financial outcomes (i.e., performance of the repayment waterfall) and (ii) publicly reported ecosystem outcomes such as on-chain usage, TVL, revenue, developer participation, and real-world adoption.
If performance underwhelms, the GP, in coordination with the SPV and the community, may adjust the deployment pace or strategy within the approved caps or reduce or pause new investments. Throughout the DDC Fund’s lifecycle, the team intends to maintain open lines of communication with the Cardano community and builders through regular reporting, public forums, and feedback sessions, ensuring continuous dialogue and alignment, without committing to specific outcomes.
Which KPIs will be reported on the public dashboard? How frequently will they be updated?
The public dashboard is expected to report ecosystem-level KPIs such as TVL growth, on-chain usage, network revenue, user adoption and retention across portfolio projects, partnerships, developer onboarding and engagement, open-source contributions, and public-goods activity.
Metrics are intended to be live where on-chain data is available and otherwise updated on a regular basis, complemented by periodic written reports. All metrics are provided for transparency purposes only and do not constitute performance guarantees.
What is the purpose of eLPs? Why are they not sharing in the expenses of Growth Capital and Educational Support?
eLPs are intended to be strategic partners that can enhance ecosystem initiatives and add tangible value to portfolio companies through domain expertise, industry relationships, go-to-market support, and follow-on capital pathways. Their participation is meant to strengthen execution and outcomes across the portfolio, not simply increase fund size.
eLP capital is excluded from paying expenses related to Growth Capital and Educational Support to ensure those allocations remain fully dedicated to Treasury-aligned ecosystem development initiatives. This separation maintains clear governance boundaries, avoids cross-subsidization, and ensures that eLP participation focuses on investments and value creation rather than ecosystem spend.
What happens if eLP capital is never fully raised?
If the $5M of eLP capital is not fully raised, the DDC Fund would scale its direct investment activity accordingly and prioritize deployment of Treasury-aligned capital. The overall strategy, governance framework, and spending caps remain unchanged.
What is the DDC Fund strategy? What types of projects will be funded?
The DDC Fund’s strategy is to invest in early-stage founders and support companies from ideation through early maturity. The focus is on attracting new developers to the ecosystem and backing Cardano-native projects that expand real-world adoption and network utility. Investments primarily span from pre-seed to pre–Series A stages, complemented by post-accelerator and venture studio support.
What happens if one or more Treasury withdrawals fail to pass?
If a withdrawal action does not pass, the SPV and GP will assess the reasons and may resubmit. If withdrawals become impractical (e.g., governance constraints), the GP (after consultation with the SPV) may restructure within caps, seek other eLPs, scale back, or potentially wind down under defined conditions.
Why is the total withdrawal cap set at 175M, and how was this number chosen?
The 175M ADA total withdrawal cap over the course of 6 years was selected to place a hard upper bound on Treasury exposure while preserving flexibility across market cycles. The figure accounts for ADA price volatility, expected drawdown pacing, and practical withdrawal limits under the NCL.
Importantly, the cap represents an upper bound, not a commitment to withdraw or deploy all funds. In stronger markets, fewer withdrawals may be required. In weaker or volatile markets, the cap ensures the DDC Fund can selectively call capital and pursue high-quality opportunities without requiring repeated governance actions. This structure balances downside protection for the Treasury with sufficient flexibility to act opportunistically, without increasing risk beyond the approved limit.
Why do the tranche withdrawals skip year 3?
The base schedule contemplates tranches in years 1, 2, and 4, which reduces withdrawal frequency while allowing time for deployment, measurement, and adjustment based on market conditions (but still subject to the tranche/aggregate caps).
Can Growth Capital ever be converted to direct investments?
Any unused amounts across budget categories (including Growth Capital, Educational Support, and approved expenses) may be reallocated into Direct Investments.
This flexibility is intended to maximize capital efficiency while remaining within the total approved budget, spending caps, and governance framework. No reallocation would increase overall Treasury exposure or bypass required transparency and reporting commitments.
What is included in the “Preference Amount”?
It is the aggregate capital deployed for Direct Investments, plus Growth Capital, and such aggregate capital is intended to be returned to the Treasury before any further profit splits with the GP occur.
