| Specifications | Details |
| --- | --- |
| Platform _(underlying architecture)_ | Layer 1 |
| Consensus Algorithm | Proof-of-Stake ( [Ouroboros](https://cardano.org/ouroboros/)) |
| Ecosystem | Cardano |
| Token | ADA (₳) |
| Native Token Ticker | $ADA |
| Smallest Unit | Lovelace (1 ADA = 10^6 lovelace) |
| ARR or APY | ~3% |
| Max Supply | 45B (capped supply) |
| Delegation Requirements (Min-Max) | No minimum and maximum limit<br>Technically it requires 2 ADA as a deposit to register the staking address but it is refundable on deregistering the account address |
| Stake Activation Period | ~20 days |
| Reward Distribution Period | Every epoch (~5 days) |
| Compounding | Automatic |
| Compounding Frequency | Automatically redelegated as rewards earned |
| Unbonding Period | No unbonding period |
| Lockup Period | No lockup period |
| Penalties and Slashing | No slashing |
| Burn Mechanism | None |
| Validator Self-Bond Requirement | No Self-Bond required but recommended to self-bond |
| Inflation | ~7% |
| Validator Set Diversity | Cardano has ~3000 validators. As of [December 2020](https://iohk.io/en/blog/posts/2020/11/05/parameters-and-decentralization-the-way-ahead/) , Cardano's _**k**_ parameter is 500, setting the stake pool's saturation point at 64 million ADA. |
| Governance Mechanism | On-chain governance |
| Smart Contract Support | Yes |
| Smart Contract Programming Language | Plutus |
| Cross-chain Compatibility (Interoperability) | Yes |
| TPS (Transaction Throughput) | ~250 TPS - 1000 TPS |
| Transaction Finality | ~20 seconds with probabilistic finality<br>12 hours+ with guaranteed finality |
| Link to Explorer(s) | [https://explorer.cardano.org/](https://explorer.cardano.org/en) [https://beta.explorer.cardano.org/en/](https://beta.explorer.cardano.org/en/) [https://cexplorer.io/](https://cexplorer.io/) |
| Testnet Faucet | [https://docs.cardano.org/cardano-testnets/tools/faucet/](https://docs.cardano.org/cardano-testnets/tools/faucet/) |
| Figment’s Public Validator Address | `290401c779b426c134d7a193aeda69bfda40365ecf41c32312676bb1` and<br>`A19651b8c24726ebdf99a54e08814ade3fcd8054efcbcdf67f3ae6ad` |
| Figment Staking Guide | [**HERE**](/content/insights/cardano-staking-guide/index.html) |
| Figment Supported MEV Relay | N/A |
| Recommended Non-custodial Wallet(s) | Ledger, Daedalus, Yoroi |
| CoinGecko Profile | [https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/cardano](https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/cardano) |