Did Charles Hoskinson sell 1.5 billion Cardano in 2021?

A new on-chain analysis has revived old accusations against Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson. NFT creator Masato Alexander has published a detailed chain analysis that purportedly shows Hoskinson offloading around 1.5 billion ADA during the 2021 bull run, at the time when the Cardano price hit its all-time high of $3.09.

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What does the on-chain analysis say?

Masato Alexander’s investigation focuses on a series of large ADA transactions, including a transfer of 925 million ADA and multiple payments of 20 million ADA each. According to Alexander, these flows can be traced back to funding sources linked to stake pools operated by IOG, the development organisation behind Cardano. However, he adds an important caveat: the analysis does not prove the tokens were actually sold.

The research was prompted by a tweet from May 2025, in which user @_slimelife claims to have sold around 1.5 billion ADA for Hoskinson in 2021, at prices between $1 and $3 per coin. Additionally, Hoskinson is said to have owed Gavin Wood 20 million ADA per month for ten months, but instead of making those payments in ADA, he was instructed to dump the tokens and pay the amount in cash. Alexander did not want to take those claims at face value and decided to search the blockchain himself.

Cardano Foundation responds cautiously

The Cardano Foundation says it has no insight into the specific IOG transactions cited in the X thread. At the same time, the organisation states it sees no reason to doubt the professional conduct and good intentions of the other founding parties, including Hoskinson.

The timing of the discussion is notable: Cardano is currently at $0,17. up 3.6% over the past 24 hours. Whether the renewed attention on these accusations will affect investor confidence in the network remains to be seen. The community is closely following the developments, but concrete evidence of large-scale selling by Hoskinson has yet to emerge.