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Cardano’s Van Rossem hard fork proposal moved into on-chain governance voting on June 16, during Epoch 637, starting the approval process that could trigger the network’s Protocol Version 11 upgrade as early as June 28.
The van Rossem hard fork proposal now moves into Cardano’s on-chain governance process following weeks of technical testing, ecosystem coordination, and infrastructure preparation across the network’s testing environments.
The upgrade represents the next milestone toward Protocol Version 11, an important network enhancement expected to strengthen Cardano’s future scalability ambitions.
The development immediately caught the attention of the wider crypto market as Cardano continues executing one of the industry’s most decentralized governance models.
Blockchain governance organization Intersect confirmed that the van Rossem hard fork initiation governance action has officially been submitted on the Cardano mainnet.
According to governance tracking platform Gov.tools, the proposal was submitted during Epoch 637 on June 16, formally beginning the governance approval process for Protocol Version 11.
Unlike previous major network overhauls, the van Rossem hard fork is classified as an intra-era hard fork, meaning the network can introduce improvements without forcing Cardano into a completely new blockchain era.
This structure significantly reduces disruption for network participants, including wallet providers, exchanges, decentralized applications, and stake pool operators.
The significance of the van Rossem hard fork extends far beyond the current upgrade cycle.
The upgrade is widely viewed as the technical foundation for Cardano’s next blockchain era known as Dijkstra, a major infrastructure phase expected to prepare the network for Leios.
Leios has been designed as Cardano’s long-term scaling solution aimed at dramatically increasing transaction throughput while preserving decentralization.
Recent network testing has already shown strong progress. Cardano’s Preview network successfully upgraded to Protocol Version 11 in May, while Preprod followed shortly after completing governance validation requirements.
The successful transition has boosted confidence that the van Rossem hard fork could proceed smoothly once mainnet approval is finalized.
Ahead of the van Rossem hard fork, Cardano developers moved aggressively to prepare supporting infrastructure.
As previously reported by Input Output Global, the popular Cardano wallet Lace Wallet received important upgrades specifically designed to improve compatibility with Protocol Version 11.
The upgrade focuses heavily on improving Plutus smart contract performance, strengthening ledger consistency, and improving node-level security across the blockchain.
Charles Hoskinson, founder of Input Output Global, has repeatedly emphasized the importance of infrastructure upgrades for Cardano’s long-term growth.
As Hoskinson previously stated:
“Scalability and governance remain essential pillars for Cardano’s long-term evolution.”
The van Rossem hard fork carries emotional significance within the Cardano community.
The hard fork was named in honor of Max van Rossem, a respected Cardano ecosystem contributor who passed away in October 2025.
Intersect described Max van Rossem as a developer, stake pool operator, delegated representative (DRep), Constitutional Convention delegate, and a dedicated builder who played an important role within the ecosystem.
The naming proposal previously secured overwhelming governance support with 83.62% DRep approval and backing from approximately 4.44 billion ADA.
In an earlier memorial statement, Intersect described him as someone who:
“Asked hard questions, built relentlessly, and consistently showed up for the community.”
The van Rossem hard fork now serves as both a technological milestone and a lasting tribute.
The final stage now depends entirely on Cardano’s governance participants.
Current ratification dates for the van Rossem hard fork include June 23, June 28, July 3, July 8, July 13, and July 18.
If approval moves quickly, network activation could happen as early as June 28, while July 23 remains the final projected activation window.
The proposal officially expires on July 18, giving delegated representatives, stake pool operators, and the Constitutional Committee a narrow decision-making period.
For Cardano, the van Rossem hard fork now becomes another major test of its evolving decentralized governance system.
As the blockchain industry watches closely, this upgrade may define Cardano’s path toward its most ambitious scaling era yet.
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