Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026-2027)
On-chain changes
- 1,680,000 ₳paid tostake1u92...fc8h620a
Abstract
Eternl is a non-custodial Cardano light wallet for the web, browser extension, Android, and iOS.
Users rely on Eternl for payments, staking, governance, and DApp interaction.
This proposal enables 12 months of operations, maintenance, and improvements. It includes frontend and backend maintenance and development, backend infrastructure, user support, and day-to-day operations.[^1]
The goal is to keep Eternl secure, compatible, stable, and available as Cardano keeps evolving. This costs around $420,000 per year.
Motivation & rationale
Budget and Budget Breakdown
The Path to Sustainability
Eternl will introduce a Pro plan for personal and company use.
| Plan | Price |
|---|---|
| Personal | $96/year ($8/month) |
| Company | $384/year ($32/month)[^2] |
Eternl has an install base of about 100,000 on the browser extension and about 30,000 across Android and iOS.
If about 4.2% of that install base, or roughly 5,500 users, support Eternl by buying a Pro plan, this income alone would fully cover the annual $420,000 cost.
Since markets are down badly, this proposal helps cover Eternl's costs until income from Pro plan sales is enough to fully replace them.
We will keep a basic version of Eternl free, but aim to make Eternl Pro the best experience for all Ada holders.
[^1]: A more detailed breakdown of what we do can be found at the end of the proposal.
[^2]: Pro Plan prices are not finalized.
What We Ask From the Cardano Community
Total: ₳1,680,000, at about $0.25 per Ada.
| Category | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend | ₳924,000 | 55% |
| Backend | ₳420,000 | 25% |
| Support | ₳84,000 | 5% |
| Admin | ₳235,200 | 14% |
| Audits | ₳16,800 | 1% |
What We Will Do After the Treasury Withdrawal
We will convert the full amount into stablecoins and deposit it into a public company wallet for everyone to monitor.
Paying It Back to the Treasury
Every December and June, we will assess the following:
Full repayment
Are the remaining treasury stablecoins plus paid plan income above $420,000? If yes, we will use 100% of the surplus to repay the treasury. We will do this until the full USD value of this proposal, as received from the treasury, has been repaid. This means repaying an amount equal to $420,000 in Ada.
Additional treasury donation
Has the full $420,000 USD value already been repaid in Ada? And was income from Pro plan sales above $420,000 in the last 12 months?
If yes, we will donate 50% of the income above $420,000 to the treasury. We will do this until an additional $210,000 worth of Ada has been donated to the treasury.
Transparency
Every paid Pro plan will be recorded on-chain with metadata. We will publish a report on Pro plan earnings. We will also publish the treasury repayment and donation transaction hash.
Administrative Remarks
Tastenkunst GmbH will be the treasury fund administrator for this proposal. This proposal is not milestone-based. It ensures funds availability for a 12-month period.
Summary
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Treasury ask | ₳1,680,000, at $0.25 per Ada |
| Delivery period | 12 months |
| Schedule | August 2026 to July 2027 |
| Proposal lead | Marcel Baumberg |
| Submitting entity | Tastenkunst GmbH, Eternl |
| Team | 10 people contribute to Eternl. This proposal funds 6.0 FTE at $70,000 per FTE. |
| Administrator | Tastenkunst GmbH |
Impact
Eternl is one of the primary gateways for Cardano's power. Its maintenance and further development assure reliable access to the blockchain.
Core Cardano KPIs Alignment
| KPI | Alignment | Description |
|---|---|---|
| TVL | partially | DeFi users often manage their positions through Eternl. Providing them with reliable access to their daily business indirectly enhances TVL. |
| Monthly transactions | partially | 10-18% of transactions on Mainnet are conducted via Eternl. The Cardano Vision 2030 proclaims a 324M annual transaction goal. Eternl does its part to reach that goal. |
| Active Wallets (MAU) | partially | Eternl supports 66 languages and is available on numerous mobile and desktop platforms. New users can start their Cardano journey on reliable infrastructure. |
Pillars
| Pillar | Alignment | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Pillar 1: Infrastructure & Research Excellence | partially | Resilient and reliable access to Cardano, independent of FE or VC influence, is crucial. Eternl has provided this access across several platforms with basically zero downtime for over 5 years. |
| Pillar 2: Adoption & Utility | partially | Eternl provides a vast feature set for power users and newcomers alike, enabling all possible protocol and smart contract interactions. |
| Pillar 3: Governance | partially | Eternl provides independent in-app governance tools that let DReps vote directly on proposals. Ada holders can browse active proposals and see how DReps have voted. It is currently the only wallet offering a comprehensive governance UI. Btw. This proposal was completely created and posted in the upcoming Eternl version with governance enhancements. |
| Pillar 4: Community & Ecosystem Growth | partially | We believe that Eternl is the wallet of choice for many developers building on Cardano. We will continue building out the developer tools in the app. |
| Pillar 5: Ecosystem Sustainability & Resilience | Not applicable | - |
FAQ
Will you be voting on your own proposal?
Yes. Our delegates certainly expect Eternl to be available in the future.
What income streams do you have?
Eternl charges a small service fee on transactions of 100 Ada or above in its DApp Browser and the MonsterSwap feature. In the current low-volume, low-price environment, those fees have been insufficient to cover costs, which is why we need to introduce paid plans as a more reliable source of income.
Why didn't you introduce paid plans earlier?
We had hoped for a stronger market and for the Ada price to stay above $0.50, but that didn't happen. Our goal was to earn enough in service fees to be sustainable and to provide all Eternl features and updates for free to all users.
Will the service fees or Tastenkunst's other income streams be taken into account when calculating the treasury payback?
No. The service fees cover rent for our small office, accounting costs, legal costs, and other expenses, such as software licenses.
Will Eternl be open-source?
The main UI will not be open-source. We will publish some libraries that we use in Eternl via the npm registry: https://www.npmjs.com/org/eternl
If the Ada price is above $0,25 when you convert the funds, what will you do?
We will only keep $420,000 in stablecoins; the remaining Ada will be returned to the treasury.
Eternl got Treasury funds in the last budget process. How did that go?
In the 2025 budget process, we requested ₳583,000 ($408,000) for 12 months of operations. We valued Ada at $0,70 in last year’s proposal.
Due to the Ada price decrease, we have not received the expected amount; to date, we are about $133,000 short of the proposed amount. That’s the main reason we have to submit this proposal to ensure continuity for the team as we introduce the long-planned Pro mode.
What will happen if Eternl does not get treasury funds?
Paid plans will help us understand whether Eternl can become self-sustaining under current market conditions. If we do not sell enough licenses beyond August, we will have to let go of our developers, scale Eternl down to essential maintenance, and shift our focus to work outside the Cardano ecosystem.
We want to keep Eternl available. But without enough funding, we may have to remove the free option and focus on users who support Eternl with paid licenses. This would mean a smaller team, fewer resources, and less resilient infrastructure. As a result, new features and support may be affected.
What's Coming Up for Eternl in the Coming Months?
Eternl Core
A complete rewrite of Eternl's core, which has been in development for a few months. We implemented our own CBOR library in TypeScript, to be published under BUSL-1.1 later this year, and replaced CSL across the entire codebase. Faster transaction building and more flexibility for future feature additions. This also means a snappier interface and better loading times.
Eternl Hub
Safely connect any Eternl app to any other Eternl app, e.g., an extension to a mobile app, or to devices of family or coworkers. Share wallets and settings. Even share wallets temporarily. Users can forward signing requests, e.g., create a transaction on the extension and sign it on a mobile device, or vice versa. We have many more features planned for Hub, like better DApp connections, and for that, we will introduce a CIP and make Eternl Hub open-source.
Enhanced Hardware Wallet Support
We will add more hardware wallet providers, enabling them to add fully featured Cardano support on their devices. Additionally, Eternl mobile apps will support Bluetooth connections and gain support for Ledger, OneKey, and Trezor, coming in v2.1.
Enhanced Wallet Data Export
Create entities, e.g., companies or individuals, and export data that combines all entities' accounts into a single view, saving hours of manual processing of intra-entity transactions.
Maintenance and Continued Development
Backend Infrastructure & Operations
- Resilient multi-region server setup
- Cardano node operation, including Hardfork upgrades
- Chain indexers (DBSync) on PostgreSQL
- Application servers for syncing, translations, stakepool data, governance data, smart contract data, scam token registry, and transaction submission endpoints
- Metadata aggregation for assets, governance, and pools across multiple data sources
- Backend services for upcoming Eternl Hub features
- 24/7 monitoring, alerting, and incident response across multiple servers
Frontend Maintenance & Cross-Platform Development
- Cross-platform shipping: Chrome extension, Web App/PWA, iOS, Android, plus a public beta channel
- Continuous security-critical upgrades
- CIP implementation as new standards emerge: dApp connector (CIP-30), NFT standards, new connection types, L2 support in the future
- Implementation and testing of new Hardfork features. Especially fundamental changes coming up with Dijkstra and Leios.
- Multisig wallet creation, configuration, and signing flows, transaction sharing
- dApp interoperability across the broader Cardano dApp ecosystem
- App Store and Play Store compliance, especially Apple's review cycles
- Hardware wallet support: Ledger, Trezor, OneKey, Keystone, more coming, tracking firmware updates from each vendor
- Bluetooth hardware wallet support, with mobile Bluetooth expansion in progress
Enhancing Governance Tooling
- DRep dashboards and proposal browsers
- Enhancing in-wallet voting on governance actions
- Ongoing expansion of voter and DRep tooling, e.g., creating governance proposals directly in Eternl
User Support
- Discord-based ticketing as the primary channel, plus a maintained Telegram channel
- Bug triage and direct assistance are handled by the development team
- Community-supported help in public channels
- 1-on-1 support channels with many ecosystem projects
- Maintenance and enhancement of the Eternl Wiki through adding to the knowledge base and producing short educational videos
Day-to-Day Operations
- Release management across all distribution channels
- Coordination with hardware wallet vendors, dApp developers, and CIP authors
- Internal code review and ongoing security practices
History of Catalyst Grants and Treasury Grants
Catalyst
- #900103 - "Enable Eternl" (Fund 9) - $90,000
- #900102 - "Evolve Eternl" (Fund 9) - $90,000
- #900203 - "Translate Eternl" (Fund 9) - $46,000
- #1000157 - "Enable Eternl - F10" (Fund 10) - ₳554,000
- #1000081 - "Eternl - Accessible Multi-sig - F10" (Fund 10) - ₳69,200
- #1000197 - "Cardano knowledge base - F10" (Fund 10) - ₳20,800
Intersect
- "Update Eternl to implement CIP-95" - ₳70,000
Treasury Withdrawal
Tastenkunst GmbH was the recipient of treasury funds from the 2025 budget process. The funding period for this proposal ends in July 2026.
- "Withdraw ₳583,000 for Eternl Maintenance administered by Intersect"
https://adastat.net/governances/8ad3d454f3496a35cb0d07b0fd32f687f66338b7d60e787fc0a22939e5d8833e10
Rationale highlights
Why some of the largest DReps voted for and against, in their own words.
I am voting YES on "Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026-2027)." Although it is not open source, there is a repayment plan, and considering comprehensively that Eternl currently functions as a strong driver of Cardano's transaction production, I have decided...
I am voting YES on "Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026-2027)."
Although it is not open source, there is a repayment plan, and considering comprehensively that Eternl currently functions as a strong driver of Cardano's transaction production, I have decided to vote YES. Within the Japanese community as well, members who participate in DeFi appear to lean toward preferring Eternl.ーーー
私は「Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026-2027)」にYesを投票します。
非オープンソースですが、返済計画があり、現在、eternlが cardanoの強力なTx生産のためのドライバーとして機能していることも総合的に加味して、YESを投票することにしました。日本コミュニティでも、defiに参加しているメンバーは、eternlを好む傾向があるように見えます。
I really love the work Eternl has done. However, the attempt at having people pay for a "Pro" plan was already somewhat tried with the NFT collection that the Eternl team put out (I know it's not exactly the same, but it's close) and that didn't really work...
I really love the work Eternl has done. However, the attempt at having people pay for a "Pro" plan was already somewhat tried with the NFT collection that the Eternl team put out (I know it's not exactly the same, but it's close) and that didn't really work out. I don't generally see this kind of "pro" plan being a popular business model for wallets in general. Given Eternl has received money from the treasury before, I would prefer if the proposal just accepted the reality that until things like built-in swaps can generate more revenue (the most common wallet revenue generation model) that Eternl acts somewhat as a public good and therefore should be open sourced.
The Cardano Foundation votes YES. We recognize Eternl as important ecosystem infrastructure and view its repayment-linked structure as a credible bridge towards self-sustainability. A PDF version of this rationale is also made available. Eternl is one of the...
The Cardano Foundation votes YES. We recognize Eternl as important ecosystem infrastructure and view its repayment-linked structure as a credible bridge towards self-sustainability.
A PDF version of this rationale is also made available.
Eternl is one of the principal non-custodial gateways for payments, staking, DApp interaction, and governance, currently offering one of the most comprehensive in-wallet voting and DRep tooling experiences.
Our decision to support this proposal is driven by the following factors:
- Ecosystem Utility: Eternl supports web, browser extension, Android, and iOS users, and the proposal describes ongoing maintenance across frontend, backend, support, and operations. We view this as relevant infrastructure for Cardano users, developers, and dApp interactions. The proposal also includes continued work on governance tooling, including DRep dashboards, proposal browsing, and in-wallet voting functionality, which aligns with our interest in accessible and usable governance.
- Transition Toward Sustainability: The proposal does not present treasury funding as a permanent operating model. It describes a 12-month funding period from August 2026 to July 2027 and a planned Pro subscription model for personal and company users to generate sufficient income to reach self-sustainability. The stated target is approximately 5,500 paying users, or about 4.2% of the reported install base, to cover the annual operating cost of approximately $420,000. We view this as a meaningful attempt to transition away from recurring ecosystem funding, while recognizing that execution risk remains.
- Repayment-Oriented Structure: The on-chain withdrawal requests 1,680,000 ada, which the proposer frames as approximately $420,000 at $0.25 per ada. The proposal states that the full amount will be converted into stablecoins and placed in a public company wallet, and that surplus funds and future Pro plan income will be assessed every December and June for treasury repayment and later donation. While this is not the same as a milestone-based disbursement or an externally administered repayment mechanism, it is a more constructive funding structure than a simple grant.
- Budget Scope and Continuity: The proposal funds 6.0 FTE at $70,000 per FTE for a 12-month operating period, covering frontend, backend, support, administration, and audits. We consider the requested scope understandable for a cross-platform wallet with backend infrastructure, user support, app store obligations, hardware wallet support, and Cardano protocol compatibility requirements.
We also recognize the concerns. Eternl has previously received direct treasury funding, the current proposal is self-administered by Tastenkunst GmbH, and it is not milestone-based. The proposal’s claims about transaction share are not independently evidenced in the material provided. These concerns are material, but on balance, we believe the ecosystem risk of losing or significantly reducing a widely used wallet during a transition to paid plans outweighs the risk of supporting this time-limited withdrawal.
The Cardano Foundation votes YES. Our support is based on Eternl’s practical importance to Cardano users and the proposal’s stated path toward paid-plan sustainability and treasury repayment. We encourage the team to provide clear public reporting on fund custody, Pro plan adoption, and any repayments, so the community can assess whether this transition model is working.
---> **_NOTE on 'Internal Voting':_**> The fields _constitutional_ and _unconstitutional_ below reflect the CF governance teams' individual opinions whether they are _for_ or _against_ the proposal. Reason for this inconsistency is, that CIP-136 is at the moment only applicable to CC rationales, but we want to record the internal opinions of our DRep assessment transparently as well.As a DRep, I have decided to vote NO on the proposal: Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026–2027) My rationale: I want to begin by saying that I respect the Eternl team and the work they have done for Cardano. Eternl is one of the top wallets in the ecosystem...
As a DRep, I have decided to vote NO on the proposal: Eternl: Path to Sustainability (2026–2027)
My rationale:
I want to begin by saying that I respect the Eternl team and the work they have done for Cardano. Eternl is one of the top wallets in the ecosystem and should be preserved. Wallets are a critical infrastructure that users cannot do without. The quality of wallets significantly influences how users perceive the quality, reliability, and capabilities of the entire ecosystem.
Wallets must be maintained. They must prepare for hard forks, implement new CIPs, support new ledger and governance features, maintain compatibility with hardware wallets and DApps, and provide users with a reliable interface to the Cardano network.
For this reason, I believe it can make sense for wallet teams to seek Treasury support for maintenance and protocol-related work. However, I am less convinced that the Treasury should fund product expansion, proprietary roadmap items, or commercial growth features.
Some parts of this proposal may be appropriate for Treasury funding, mainly maintenance, hard-fork readiness, security-critical upgrades, CIP implementation, governance compatibility, and the infrastructure required to keep the wallet operational.
Other parts of the roadmap may be better suited for the Draper Orion Fund or other funding vehicles rather than a direct Treasury withdrawal. In general, growth-oriented products with potential revenue models should be funded through mechanisms that include external due diligence, clear expectations, and measurable return to the ecosystem.
Eternl has already received significant public support. From Catalyst, the ADA-denominated grants are ₳69.2k, ₳554k, and ₳20.8k, for a total of ₳644k. Together with last year’s on-chain Treasury withdrawal of ₳583k, this equals approximately ₳1.227M. In addition, Eternl received USD-denominated Catalyst grants of $90k, $90k, and $46k, for a total of $226k USD.
This is substantial ecosystem support. I do not say this to diminish Eternl’s contribution, but to point out that future requests should be more narrowly focused on public-good maintenance rather than expansion. We should also give other wallets room to grow and compete fairly.
For the Treasury, picking winners is always complicated. There is currently no clear consensus or rule among DReps on how to fund public goods, especially when the beneficiary is a private product competing in a market with several other wallets. This makes the decision harder.
In the current market conditions, it is challenging for wallets and DeFi protocols to build a functional business model. I recognize that reality, and I am willing to consider Treasury funding for maintenance and protocol-critical work. But I believe we should be cautious when Treasury funding supports the expansion of one already-dominant wallet over others.
For wallets, the long-term path must be to find a sustainable business model. Eternl appears to have found one and is now expanding it through paid services. I appreciate this direction. However, if a wallet is moving toward a commercial model, then Treasury funding should be limited to clearly defined public-good work, not general operations or growth. Paid services, premium features, and enterprise-style tools should ideally be funded by customers, investors, or ecosystem investment vehicles rather than direct grants.
A YES decision would also be easier if Eternl were open source. I understand that not every team is ready to open source its entire product, and I respect the need to protect business interests and security-sensitive parts of the codebase.
However, when a project seeks repeated Treasury funding, the public-good argument becomes stronger when important components are open, reusable, and verifiable by the community.
Eternl mentions that some libraries will be published, which is a positive step. In my view, this should happen before asking for another broad Treasury withdrawal, not after. Open-sourcing important components would make it easier to distinguish between public-good funding and private product funding.
I am also concerned that Eternl plans to vote YES on its own proposal. This is not ideal in our young governance system. We should cultivate a healthy governance culture from the beginning. Proposers should not vote for proposals from which they directly benefit. In an ideal governance culture, even founding entities may need to be very careful when voting on proposals connected to their own interests. It would be more appropriate and more credible for Eternl to abstain and leave the decision to other DReps, especially because Eternl is one of the largest DReps in the ecosystem.
For these reasons, I am voting NO. I remain open to supporting a revised proposal under these conditions:
- Open source important components of Eternl that are funded as public goods.
- Reduce the requested scope and ask specifically for maintenance, hard-fork readiness, CIP implementation, and governance-critical work.
- Abstain as a DRep on proposals from which Eternl or Tastenkunst directly benefits.
If you'd like to support my work, consider delegating to the MANDA pool and backing me as a DRep. Your support is the only way I can get time for governance.
MANDA Pool ID:
pool1c3fjkls7d2aujud8y5xy5e0azu0ueatwn34u7jy3ql85ze3xya8My DRep ID:
drep1y2m0g4r66pyaw3p7u454wc0p4f0ygm8ueaev0mgd3tvwm7sskqwqp