The blockchain firm behind Kadena, once touted as a scalable alternative to Bitcoin and Ethereum, has announced it is winding down operations, triggering a steep selloff of its native token, KDA.
Company Shuts Down, But Network Remains Online
In a post on X, the Kadena organization announced it is winding down all business operations and will no longer maintain the blockchain due to challenging market conditions. However, the group stressed that the Kadena network itself will continue to operate.
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The network’s decentralized proof-of-work design means miners and independent node operators can still validate transactions and secure the chain.
To keep the network running smoothly, the team said it will soon release a new software update that allows the blockchain to operate independently, and urged all node operators to upgrade immediately.
More than 566 million KDA are still set to be distributed as mining rewards through the year 2139, while an additional 83.7 million tokens will gradually be released from lockup through November 2029.
Despite these assurances, the market reacted sharply. The KDA token fell more than 57% in value within a few hours of the announcement. Since then, the token’s price has seen little change, trading around $0.09 at the time of writing.
Source: TradingView
KDA’s spot trading volume surged by 1,220% in the past 24 hours, reaching $87.5 million and bringing the token’s market capitalization to about $30.07 million.
This marks the second sharp decline for KDA in a month. During the October 10 market crash, the token plunged over 77%, falling from $0.37 to $0.08. Although prices briefly recovered afterward, KDA has never regained its previous value.
Source: TradingView
From Enterprise Ambition to Uncertain Future
Founded in 2019 by former JPMorgan technologists, Kadena set out to blend enterprise-grade security with blockchain scalability through a proof-of-work network that supports smart contracts, a rare combination at the time.
Despite early attention and strong backing, Kadena’s ecosystem struggled to keep pace with rival Layer 1 blockchains. Trading volumes thinned, and developer activity waned amid growing competition.
Why This Matters
Kadena’s collapse tests whether a decentralized blockchain can truly survive without the company that built it.
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People Also Ask:
Kadena is a proof-of-work blockchain designed for scalability and smart contract functionality. Its native token is KDA, used for transactions and mining rewards.
The company behind Kadena cited market conditions and financial challenges, stating it can no longer maintain business operations.
Yes. The network is decentralized. Miners and independent node operators can continue running the blockchain, even without corporate support.
Recovery depends on whether miners, node operators, and the community continue maintaining and developing the network. The shutdown tests the blockchain’s decentralization and resilience.
