Cardano’s Hoskinson Promises Full Support Amid Ross Ulbricht’s Release

Charles Hoskinson, Cardano cofounder, has pledged to support Ross Ulbricht, founder of the Silk Road marketplace. Hoskinson’s promise of support comes after the presidential pardon of Ulbricht, who has been serving a double life sentence plus 40 years in U.S. federal prison.

Ross Ulbricht, Welcome back to the fold

Notably, Ulbricht’s release comes after the new U.S. president granted him a pardon, making him a free man.

Hoskinson wrote in a post on X, “Welcome home, Ross. We, as an industry, have your back. Whatever you need, we are here on your journey back to freedom.”

Welcome home, Ross. We, as an industry, have your back. Whatever you need, we are here on your journey back to freedom. https://t.co/oJDuc1yZaa

— Charles Hoskinson (@IOHK_Charles) January 22, 2025

The Cardano cofounder’s message indicates the solidarity he is willing to extend to Ulbricht to help him find his footing. Some stakeholders believe the support could include financial assistance, reintegration efforts or other support to assist Ulbricht.

Hoskinson’s message of support aligns with a similar congratulatory post by Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. The Binance cofounder celebrated Ulbricht’s release, noting that the new president had kept his word. CZ appreciated the gesture, now seen as a life-saving one for Ulbricht.

Ross Ulbricht’s impact on crypto

Ross Ulbricht, 41, was imprisoned in 2013 for the role he played in founding and running of the Silk Road darknet marketplace. The charges against him included providing a platform for free trade in illegal drugs using Bitcoin as currency.

Notably, the Silk Road marketplace is arguably the first and largest online platform to embrace Bitcoin as a payment channel. Many in the crypto space still consider Ulbricht one of the founding stakeholders who promoted Bitcoin adoption in the broader society.

Hence, many in the industry have welcomed his release from a prison term that could have resulted in Ulbricht spending the rest of his life in jail.

The plans to release Ross Ulbricht started last year. Following a decade long campaign for his release, he is finally going home.

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