Smart contract deployment on the Cardano network reached a significant milestone this year, nearly crossing 100,000, as blockchain gains traction.
Cardano Blockchain Insight collated the data from the Plutus-based smart contract deployer, which specifies the amount deployed by each software version. For context, Plutus is a smart contract platform on the Cardano network that allows developers to create decentralized applications that can interact with the blockchain.
Plutus V2 Leads the Smart Contract Mania
The second version of the Plutus programming language was the star of the show, as it was responsible for most of the smart contract deployment.
At the start of the year, there were just 8,083 Plutus V2 scripts on the blockchain. However, the total tally surged to 105,500 on December 29, appreciating by 97,417 smart contracts during the year.
Notably, the Plutus V2 application went live on the Cardano network in September 2022 after the Vasil hard fork. The script enhanced smart contract features in the Cardano ecosystem, introducing features such as reference inputs, inline datum, and reference script.
Meanwhile, the Plutus V1 also saw substantial traction. The maiden smart contract script added 573 smart contracts to the network, growing from 6,296 at the beginning of the year to 6,869 as of December 27.
Furthermore, the newly introduced Plutus V3 programming software also recorded considerable usage in its short time of existence. For context, the Cardano ecosystem debuted the third version of Plutus in preparation for the September 1 Chang hard fork, which introduced decentralized governance on the blockchain.
In February, the Cardano team released Plutus V3 on the SanchoNet testnet, which has enhanced features compared to earlier versions. The application entered the mainnet in August and deployed 444 smart contracts on the Cardano blockchain.
The New Home of Decentralized Applications
Meanwhile, Cardano has established itself as one of the biggest smart contract-enabled chains in the crypto sector. It is on the grounds of its status that EMURGO partnered with BitcoinOS to bring its glaring smart contract features to the Bitcoin network.
Although the partnership suffered a major setback, Cardano’s founder, Charles Hoskinson, insisted that his team is committed to bringing decentralized finance to the network, housing over $1.8 trillion in liquidity.
Nonetheless, Cardano has shown the capacity to evolve with blockchain technology, periodically releasing new features to boost scalability and usability. One of its recent releases is the Midnight testnet, teased to bring data security to the ecosystem.
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