Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko has publicly criticized a new proposal from Cardano’s Charles Hoskinson, calling the idea of converting a portion of ADA’s treasury into Bitcoin “so dumb.”
In a post on X, Yakovenko argued that altcoin projects should not be holding Bitcoin on behalf of their communities. Instead, he believes treasuries should focus on maintaining runway with short-term U.S. Treasury bills.
“This is so dumb,” Yakovenko wrote. “Projects should keep 18-36 months of post-kill list runway in short-term T-bills, but that’s about it. Why would anyone want a team to buy and hold Bitcoin for them when they can do it themselves? Why pay for all those coconuts?”
Yakovenko’s comments were in response to a June 13 video posted by Cardano founder and Input Output Global CEO Charles Hoskinson.
In the video, Hoskinson proposed converting $100 million worth of ADA from Cardano’s treasury into a mix of Bitcoin and stablecoins.
Hoskinson said the move could support stablecoin liquidity and help grow Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem, which he noted has a much lower stablecoin-to-TVL ratio compared to Ethereum and Solana.
He argued that holding Bitcoin and stablecoins would allow Cardano to generate yield, reinvest in ADA, and create a more resilient treasury over time.
The goal, according to Hoskinson, is to create yield that could later be used to buy back ADA, helping to strengthen the protocol’s position and DeFi ecosystem over time.
“I do believe that it will not materially impact Cardano by doing a conversion of 5-10% of the treasury,” Hoskinson said. “And in doing this, we will create yield, and this yield… can be used to purchase ADA and over time replenish the treasury.”
Hoskinson described the long-term plan as a way to grow Cardano’s treasury into a “billion-dollar-plus” pool of stablecoins and Bitcoin, similar to how sovereign wealth funds operate.
Yakovenko’s response reflects a broader skepticism in parts of the crypto community about projects managing Bitcoin on behalf of users. His view is that individual holders should manage BTC exposure on their own, not through protocol-level holdings.
The debate has also drawn reactions from the broader crypto community.
One X user, “y00thereum,” mocked the shift, saying, “Remember how dis clown was always sayin that his shtcoin Cardano is better than Bitcoin? Now he wants to dump $1.2B in ADA for BTC and stables. Hahaha, you can’t make this sht up.”
Others defended the idea. A user named TJ Coosh pointed out that Cardano is building interoperability for Bitcoin in DeFi. “The BTC converted from the treasury would be to inject some BTC liquidity into DeFi pools on the Cardano side, allowing bitcoiners a smoother DeFi experience,” he said.
As altcoin projects look for ways to strengthen their ecosystems and navigate uncertain markets, the question of whether to hold Bitcoin or stick to T-bills remains up for debate.
Yakovenko has made his position clear. Whether Cardano’s plan works out is something only time will tell.
Cardano’s $100 million Bitcoin treasury proposal isn’t an isolated move; it’s part of a growing trend across major blockchains experimenting with multi-asset treasury strategies.
Polkadot is weighing a similar move. Recently, a Polkadot community member proposed selling 500,000 DOT (~$1.95 million) to build a Bitcoin reserve via a dollar-cost averaging strategy. Supporters argue BTC can help stabilize treasuries as DOT’s price continues to lag in 2025.
However, some question the timing, given Bitcoin’s current all-time highs above $106,000.
Meanwhile, Cardano’s network fundamentals remain strong. The ADA token gained 3% over the past day, following news that staking participation has surpassed 1.3 million addresses, solidifying its position among the most actively staked chains.
As treasury debates heat up, more protocols are considering formal fund oversight, including elected boards and cross-chain deployment, signaling a shift in how on-chain capital is managed in the maturing DeFi ecosystem.
