Cardano Network Nears Operating Limit With 94% Congestion

• Cardano is currently operating at 94% of its maximum capacity.
• Cardano nodes do not prioritize transactions, processes transactions on a first-come-first-serve basis.
• During maximum congestion, users would have to wait a while for their transactions to appear on-chain.

According to Sebastien Guillemot, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the Paima Ecosystem, Cardano is currently operating at 94% of its maximum capacity. In a Twitter thread, Guillemot explained the implications of the growing transaction load and the impact it could have on users.

Importantly, Guillemot noted that Cardano nodes do not prioritize transactions, meaning the blockchain processes users’ transactions on a first-come-first-serve basis. That is a different model from blockchains like Bitcoin, where users can increase their fees to enable their transactions to be moved higher up on the queue.

According to Guillemot, if Cardano’s operating capacity reaches 100%, all transactions will be put on the queue, irrespective of their attributes. That would imply one of three things.

Guillemot explained that if the Cardano network becomes congested, users would have to wait a while for their transactions to appear on-chain. The further above 100% it gets, the longer the wait. The Cardano protocol does not provide alternative means of speeding up transactions.

A second scenario during maximum congestion could imply that some transactions would never appear on the blockchain. According to Guillemot, this could happen when light wallet meme pools reach their limit. However, he noted that users are not required to pay any fees for transactions that don’t make it to the blockchain.

Guillemot informed users that stake pools sell their priority access when Cardano’s network congestion reaches its peak. Such sales are usually to network users or DApps. Hence, he advised users to pay attention to the impact on the DEXs to determine which is best to use during such periods.

Guillemot noted that the Cardano network experienced maximum congestion during the bull market in 2021. According to him, all three explained scenarios played out at the time. He thinks it is in the best interest of users to learn and understand the situation before it happens again.

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