Cardano at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026: Top-Up ‘Title’ Sponsorship Upgrade

Modular top-up unlocks the ‘Title’ Sponsorship tier, the highest level of visibility at TOKEN2049. This is an incremental request of 1,768,167 ada (equivalent to $424,360 USD, calculated at an estimated rate of $0.24 per ada) to upgrade Cardano’s presence from a 108 sqm booth to a massive 144 sqm footprint and secure a Mainstage Keynote.

Dependency Notice: This is a top-up proposal intended to be voted on in conjunction with the Cardano at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026: Baseline ‘Platinum’ Sponsorship proposal (Gov Action ID: gov_action18u8lpkzge2csxe3plynn9lh4agwtv3nrqkyfwalwj4ykjv7l68jqqzmul9z). If this proposal is ratified without the approval of the ‘Platinum’ Sponsorship proposal, EMURGO commits to returning 100% of the funds to the Cardano Treasury within 30 days of enactment, as there would be no underlying sponsorship to upgrade.

By splitting the funding request, we enable DReps to make a clear, isolated decision on the value of premium marketing exposure. The baseline ‘Platinum’ proposal ensures Cardano’s presence, while this upgrade proposal asks whether the community wishes to secure additional benefits, including a 15-minute mainstage keynote, premium media access (press release inclusion and introductions), expanded branding via lanyards, a high-traffic engagement point through the protein shake station, and a larger booth footprint, all of which enhance Cardano’s visibility and reach across the event.

The expanded booth and mainstage presence will also amplify the visibility of Cardano ecosystem projects showcasing at the event, providing them with exposure to a broader and more prominent audience.

Important Notes: Regarding the vote for this “Cardano at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026: Top-Up ‘Title’ Sponsorship Upgrade (Modular Extension)”, please vote YES only if you support the Cardano at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026: Baseline ‘Platinum’ Sponsorship Proposal as a DRep and wish to upgrade it to a ‘Title’ Sponsorship.

Empowering Builders on the Global Stage

TOKEN2049 Singapore represents the most significant opportunity of the year to showcase the vibrancy of the Cardano ecosystem. The core motivation of this proposal is to provide Cardano builders with a professional, high-traffic platform to demonstrate their innovations. We recognize that for many projects, the barrier to entry for major international conferences is high; therefore, this proposal specifically includes the provision of event tickets and dedicated showcase space for ecosystem builders, ensuring that the people actually growing the network are the ones representing it.

By planting the Cardano flag in Singapore, the heart of the global Web3 economy, we create a force multiplier effect. Our presence will facilitate high-level networking, drive project adoption, and demonstrate to the broader crypto world that Cardano is a thriving, builder-focused ecosystem ready for mass-scale integration.

The Role of EMURGO as Facilitator

To ensure the professional execution of this large-scale endeavor, EMURGO will serve as the operational facilitator. This role is uniquely suited to EMURGO for three key reasons:

1. Local Expertise: Headquartered in Singapore, EMURGO possesses the local network, vendor relationships, and logistical know-how required to navigate this complex environment efficiently.

2. Proven Track Record: With years of experience managing large-scale activations at global events, including previous iterations of TOKEN2049, EMURGO brings the institutional reliability needed to execute a world-class presence.

3. Direct Pass-Through Funding: EMURGO’s involvement is strictly to enable this community opportunity. All requested funds are designated as a direct pass-through to cover the hard costs of the venue, event delivery, build-out, and tickets. This ensures that 100% of the community’s investment is transformed into tangible value and visibility for Cardano builders.

Benefits to the Cardano Community

This activation is a community-first initiative designed to deliver direct, traceable value to the Cardano ecosystem. By securing a flagship presence at TOKEN2049 Singapore, we are not just buying visibility; we are building a strategic platform for our ecosystem’s most important asset: its builders.

The primary focus of this proposal is to provide a world-class stage for Cardano projects. Key benefits for builders include:

Provision of Event Tickets: We will provide up to 30 dedicated conference tickets for Cardano builders, ensuring they are on the ground at Marina Bay Sands to represent their projects.

Platform & Presence: Builders will have access to a dedicated builder-stage within the Cardano flagship booth and a curated exhibition space to demonstrate live product updates and production-ready applications.

Global Networking: We will facilitate direct introductions between our ecosystem’s builders and a concentrated audience of 25,000+ institutional investors, enterprise decision-makers, and industry leaders.

Long-Term Content Assets: Every presentation will be professionally captured by an exclusive videographer, with raw and edited footage provided to projects to amplify their own marketing efforts long after the event ends.

What this proposal guarantees is that every Cardano builder who can attend TOKEN2049 will be given a premier position at the largest Web3 event in the world — substage slot, booth presence, and curated introductions. The activation is structured as a coordinated, pass-through platform, aggregating resources to unlock premium positioning, substage access, and dedicated on-site support at a scale that is typically inefficient for individual projects to secure on their own.

2026 Objectives

The primary objective of this top-up upgrade is to convert premium visibility, specifically the mainstage keynote and media introductions, into measurable ecosystem growth, strategic partnerships, and institutional relationships.

The Value of the ‘Title’ Upgrade

The case for upgrading to the ‘Title’ Sponsorship at TOKEN2049 rests on the unique value of the mainstage keynote and guaranteed media exposure. While the ‘Platinum’ tier provides excellent lead generation and networking opportunities, the ‘Title’ tier provides thought leadership dominance.

The additional $424,360 USD total requested budget specifically unlocks:

• 144sqm large booth activation: A larger booth activation compared to the ‘Platinum’ sponsorship which was 108sqm
  
• 15-Minute Mainstage Keynote: A guaranteed speaking slot on the primary stage, allowing Cardano to deliver its core narrative directly to the largest possible audience.
  
• Mention in Event Press Release: Official inclusion in TOKEN2049's global PR distribution, ensuring visibility in top-tier financial and crypto media before the event begins.
  
• Introductions to Media: Direct, facilitated introductions to key journalists and reporters covering the event.
  
• Event-Wide Branding & Engagement: Branded lanyards worn by attendees throughout the event, and a dedicated protein shake station, providing continuous visibility and repeated engagement with attendees.
  
• Additional Access: 2x Invites to the exclusive Speakers Reception, 5x additional invites to AFTER 2049, and 5x additional general event tickets.

Strategic Importance of Singapore

Singapore occupies a unique position as both a regulated financial center and a leading hub for digital asset innovation. With the Singapore edition serving as TOKEN2049’s flagship event in 2026, and demand concentrated following the cancellation of Dubai, the event provides a uniquely efficient channel to engage the audiences that matter most for Cardano’s next phase of growth.

Cardano Vision 2030 Alignment

Core KPIs

By securing the mainstage keynote, Cardano's presence is elevated before 25,000+ attendees, including institutional investors, enterprise decision-makers, and Web3 builders. The keynote creates a direct pipeline for new ecosystem participants at scale. The wallet sign-up targets, lead generation, and partnership initiations in this proposal are designed to convert event engagement into measurable on-chain activity, supporting the 2030 targets of 1M MAU and ≥ 27M monthly transactions.

Pillar 2: Adoption & Utility

The mainstage keynote directly amplifies the reach of the high-value verticals identified in the strategy, DeFi, RWA, payments, and enterprise applications, by positioning Cardano's institutional-grade infrastructure before the largest possible audience in Asia's premier financial hub.

Pillar 4: Community & Ecosystem Growth

This upgrade executes directly on the strategy's call for localized adoption and global market engagement. The keynote, combined with facilitated media introductions and post-event content distribution, ensures impact extends well beyond the event itself.

Sponsorship Tier Comparison

The following table highlights the specific benefits unlocked by this top-up proposal.

Event Program

Day 1: October 7, 2026: Unified Community Day & Mainstage Keynote

The first day will focus on visibility and reach. If this upgrade is approved, the 15-minute mainstage keynote will be delivered, setting the tone for Cardano's presence. The flagship booth will host live product demonstrations from leading Cardano ecosystem builders, supported by a dedicated presentation area.

Day 2: October 8, 2026: Builder Spotlight Day

The second day will focus on deeper engagement and conversion. A second rotation of ecosystem builders will be featured, with an emphasis on networking sessions, live Q&A panels, and technical demonstrations. Facilitated media introductions unlocked by this upgrade will take place throughout the day.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

The following KPIs represent new benchmarks, on top of the existing KPIs outlined in the baseline ‘Platinum’ proposal, against which the Cardano community can hold EMURGO accountable. All metrics will be tracked and reported publicly, with a full post-event report submitted within 60 days of the event. Additionally, all leads collected will be appropriately connected with relevant companies in the ecosystem based on their interests and areas of focus.

Budget Breakdown

The total requested budget for this top-up proposal is $424,360 USD (1,768,167 ada). The budget below represents only the price delta between ‘Platinum’ (Baseline) and ‘Title’ (Top-Up) tiers. To maintain fiscal discipline, no additional management fees are added to this top-up proposal; the management of this tier is covered by the existing Baseline Proposal operational fee.

EMURGO is acting as the fiscal and operational conduit for this event. As such, these funds are treated as a direct pass-through expenditure, with 100% of the top-up capital applied to the vendor-mandated costs of the ‘Title’ Sponsorship upgrade.

Note: All ada figures are calculated at an estimated rate of $0.24 USD per ada at the time of writing. Should the ada price appreciate materially between proposal submission and event execution, any resulting surplus will be returned to the Cardano Treasury within six months of the event.

Accountability

Administration of Funds

All critical phases, acceptance benchmarks, funding disbursements, and projected timelines will be established through a legal agreement between EMURGO and the Cardano Development Holdings (CDH), as mandated by the Constitution, and will be administered by Intersect. EMURGO is committed to fulfilling the project schedule as outlined in the formal legal agreement. Essential details of this arrangement will be transparently shared through the budget management system using transaction metadata.

As dictated by the milestones within the legal contract, EMURGO will present and certify the completion of each phase to the broader community, Intersect, or third-party assurer. The ongoing progress of the initiative will be closely tracked by Intersect's delivery assurance team, ensuring regular updates are provided to the community.

The formal acceptance of completed work will be facilitated by a third-party assurer. This entity is tasked with evaluating and approving the deliverables at each project milestone, ensuring they meet the specific criteria set forth in the legal contract. The compensation for this assurance work is drawn from a designated portion of the treasury allocation.

Budget Administration Infrastructure

To securely manage treasury assets on-chain, Intersect will deploy the treasury management smart contract architecture created by Sundae Labs. These smart contracts have undergone rigorous testing, including comprehensive security audits conducted by TxPipe and MLabs. The conclusive mainnet validation test is publicly verifiable through the disburse action in transaction 0f591dc544ae14102dbb4a74d5311a6acffc1772b163d8b7a9656b9525950b17.

This particular funding withdrawal will leverage Intersect’s 2025 treasury reserve contract, located at the address stake17xzc8pt7fgf0lc0x7eq6z7z6puhsxmzktna7dluahrj6g6ghh5qjr. It is planned that these funds will be transitioned to a new 2026 treasury reserve contract once it is fully operational.

Specifics of Budget Management

Intersect will employ a single Treasury Reserve Smart Contract (TRSC) alongside multiple Project-Specific Smart Contracts (PSSC), all under Intersect's administration. The governance structure within Intersect involves three administrative roles and two leadership roles. To ensure accountability, an Oversight Committee composed of five independent, external organizations will implement a system of checks and balances. This committee is designed to prevent unilateral decision-making and mitigate potential errors. While Intersect handles the day-to-day administration of both the TRSC and PSSCs, the Oversight Committee provides crucial external review for specific, high-impact actions.

The 2025 TRSC Oversight Committee includes Sundae Labs, the Cardano Foundation, Dquadrant, Xerberus, and NMKR. Their primary function is to objectively validate significant administrative operations using on-chain logic. They ensure that actions are accurate and consistent with established rules, without imposing subjective judgment on governance matters. Comprehensive details regarding Intersect's setup can be found in the Smart Contract Guide available in the knowledge base.

The top-level permissions are outlined below:

• TRSC Fund and PSSC Modify
  
  • Authorization requires at least two of the three Intersect admins, two of the five trusted entities, and one of the two Intersect leadership members to sign off.
    
• TRSC Disperse
  
  • Authorization requires at least two of the three Intersect admins, three of the five trusted entities, and both Intersect leadership members to sign off.
    
• TRSC Pause and Resume
  
  • Authorization requires at least two of the three Intersect admins and one of the two Intersect leadership members to sign off.
    
• TRSC Sweep
  
  • Authorization requires at least one of the three Intersect admins and one of the two Intersect leadership members to sign off.
    
• TRSC Reorganize
  
  • Authorization requires at least two of the three Intersect admins and three of the five trusted entities to sign off.

Operational Procedures

Once this governance proposal is approved, project funds will be deposited into the TRSC's stake account. Neither the TRSC nor the PSSCs will be staked with a Stake Pool Operator (SPO); both will be delegated to the auto-abstain DRep. The funds will then be held in a UTxO within the TRSC.

When the 2026 TRSC is ready, funds will be migrated over via the disburse function. Once the legal contract is in place, funds will be transferred to a PSSC through the fund action, with all milestones and deliverables recorded in the transaction metadata.

A public dashboard will be made available for the community to audit the TRSC and PSSCs, track key metrics on the withdrawn ADA, and verify all fund movements on-chain.

Milestones

Disbursements will be made according to the following two milestones.

Audits

This proposal includes a provision for the cost of an independent audit, allocated within category Compliance & Governance in the budget breakdown.

Risks and Mitigation

This proposal is strictly contingent on the approval of the 'Cardano at TOKEN2049 Singapore 2026: Baseline ‘Platinum’ Sponsorship Proposal'. Should this top-up proposal pass but the Baseline proposal fails, all funds will be returned to the Treasury immediately, as the upgrade cannot exist without the foundation.

Ada price volatility is the primary financial risk. A conservative estimate of $0.24 per ada has been used. If the ada price appreciates, any resulting surplus will be returned to the Cardano Treasury within six months of the event.

The risk of TOKEN2049 being canceled is low given its strong track record and confirmed dates of October 7–8, 2026. Should a cancellation occur outside of EMURGO's control, all unspent funds, minus any unavoidable vendor commitments, will be returned to the Treasury along with a full cost breakdown.

Geopolitical disruptions or travel restrictions affecting Singapore could impact the event's value and level of attendance. If this occurs, EMURGO will assess the situation and either proceed at a reduced scale, postpone the activation, or return remaining funds to the Treasury. All decisions will be communicated transparently through the public dashboard.

Constitutional Self-Assessment

In an effort to ensure this governance action fulfills all requirements of the Cardano Constitution, EMURGO has prepared the following self-assessment.

Article I.1 - Guiding Tenets This proposal aligns with the guiding tenets of the Cardano Constitution, specifically by fostering ecosystem growth, ensuring transparency through public milestone reporting, and utilizing decentralized infrastructure for fund administration. It does not violate any of the 10 core tenets.

Article II.3.1 - Smart Contracts Use This section encourages the use of smart contracts where beneficial. This proposal leverages the open-source and audited smart contracts developed by Sundae Labs to administer the requested funding amount, directly adhering to the Constitution's encouragement to use smart contracts in the governance process.

Article II.6.1 - Governance Action Metadata Format This proposal's metadata adheres to the standardized, legible format required by CIP-0108. The metadata file is hosted immutably on IPFS, with its hash referenced in the anchor hash field and its CID link referenced in the anchor URL field of the governance action, ensuring cryptographic integrity and preventing post-submission alteration.

Article II.6.2 - Governance Action Metadata Structure The governance action metadata adheres to the required structure by including a title, abstract, motivation, rationale, and relevant supporting materials. Specifically, the rationale clearly outlines the strategic value of expanding Cardano's presence in Asian markets via a ‘Title’ Sponsorship Upgrade at TOKEN2049.

Article II.7.1 - Treasury Withdrawals Terms As required by this section of the Constitution, this proposal specifies the terms of the withdrawal:

• Purpose of the withdrawal: The purpose is to fund a ‘Title’ Sponsorship Upgrade at TOKEN2049 Singapore to increase Cardano's presence and foster ecosystem growth.
  
• Period of delivery: The proposed activities will be delivered for TOKEN2049 Singapore, taking place from October 7–8, 2026.
  
• Relevant costs and expenses: A detailed breakdown of the budgeted costs are specified in the Budget Breakdown section.
  
• Circumstances for refund: The withdrawal might be refunded to the Cardano Treasury under the following circumstances:
  
• The failure of the baseline ‘Platinum’ proposal to pass
  
• Cancellation of TOKEN2049 before vendor payments are due, with the balance returned to the Treasury
  
• Successful execution of the event with total expenses falling under the requested amount, in which case unspent ada will be returned within six months; or
  
• Realization of a profit on withdrawn ada due to ada price appreciation, which will be refunded within six months of the event.

Article II.7.2 - Prior Treasury Funding EMURGO received ada during 2025 treasury withdrawals under the Unveiling the First Unified Global Events Marketing Strategy for Cardano proposal for conducting various global events and sponsorships, and the India Blockchain Week Hackathon through the Cardano Summit 2025 and regional tech events proposal. The Hackathon hosted by EMURGO was successful and exceeded all agreed KPIs. The global events proposal is ongoing as certain events take place in 2026, and the Community can view successful milestone reporting through the Intersect dashboard.

Article II.7.3 - Net Change Limit An NCL of 350,000,000 ada for the period from epoch 613 (13-02-2026) to epoch 713 (03-07-2027) has been approved. As of the date of writing, a total of 67,842,000 ada has been withdrawn under this NCL across four enacted governance actions (Amaru: 10,142,000 ada; Dingo: 6,900,000 ada; DeFi Liquidity Budget Withdrawal 1: 800,000 ada; Orion Fund: 50,000,000 ada), leaving a remaining NCL balance of 282,158,000 ada. The 1,768,167 ada requested in this proposal falls well within this remaining balance. Furthermore, in the preferred scenario where both this proposal and the baseline ‘Platinum’ Sponsorship Proposal are approved simultaneously, the combined total of 5,071,917 ada still falls well within the remaining NCL balance of 282,158,000 ada.

Article II.7.4 - Periodic Independent Audits and Oversight Metrics This section requires that ada be allocated from the withdrawal to cover periodic independent audits and the implementation of oversight metrics. This proposal makes provisions for periodic independent audits under the Management and Administration budget category, and progress will be publicly available through the Intersect dashboard to track and monitor the smart contract instance used to administer the funding and to view updates to KPIs.

Article II.7.5 - Treasury Withdrawal Administrator This section requires that proposals specify one or more administrators. This proposal designates Intersect as the administrator, operating on behalf of the CDH, as detailed in the Accountability section. It specifies an administration process using smart contracts and an Oversight Committee, following established practices of self-administration with maximum Community visibility.

Article II.7.6 - Administrator Custody This section requires that funds held by an administrator be kept in separate, auditable accounts that are not delegated to an SPO and are set to a predefined auto-abstain voting option. This proposal withdraws funds to Intersect's Treasury Reserve Smart Contract (TRSC) address, which will then fund a Project-Specific Smart Contract (PSSC) for EMURGO. The funds will be held in a UTxO within the TRSC. Neither the TRSC nor the PSSCs will be staked with an SPO; both will be delegated to the auto-abstain DRep, providing public oversight of all operations and allowing for audits by the Cardano Community.

Appendix I.TREASURY-02a - Cardano Blockchain Guardrails In accordance with guardrail TREASURY-02a, this withdrawal does not exceed the NCL at the moment of submission.

Appendix I.TREASURY-03a - Cardano Blockchain Guardrails In accordance with guardrail TREASURY-03a, this proposal is denominated in ada.

Track Record

EMURGO is headquartered in Singapore and has maintained a continuous, multi-year partnership with TOKEN2049 spanning 2022 through 2025. This relationship provides EMURGO with contractual leverage, preferred positioning, and direct access to the TOKEN2049 organizing team that no other entity in the Cardano ecosystem can replicate. This is not a speculative sponsorship, instead it is the continuation of a proven, established commercial relationship.

Under the previous proposal, EMURGO successfully managed the TOKEN2049 sponsorship component of the 2025 events strategy, ensuring strong and consistent Cardano branding throughout the sponsorship activation. The results of that activation were publicly reported, with KPI tracking available through the Intersect dashboard. EMURGO's deep roots in the Asian Web3 market, combined with its institutional relationships across Singapore's financial sector, make it the natural and most qualified executor of this sponsorship.

This proposal is submitted in good faith, with a full commitment to delivering a high-quality and measurable activation. Approval from the community will enable EMURGO to secure maximum marketing exposure at TOKEN2049 and initiate the detailed planning required to execute at the level the Cardano ecosystem deserves.

Disclaimer and Dependencies

The successful execution of this sponsorship depends on timely approval from DReps. A lead time of at least four months is required to secure the sponsorship package, engage booth builders, and coordinate ecosystem project participation. A reduced planning timeline may result in a reduced scale of the booth build or changes to the builder showcase program.

Active engagement and participation from Cardano ecosystem projects is essential. EMURGO will coordinate a selection process for builder showcase slots, prioritizing projects that can demonstrate live, production-ready applications to a sophisticated institutional audience. Details on this will be published by EMURGO following governance approval, ensuring transparent and community-aligned access to booth showcase and presentation opportunities.