Cardano Leios upgrade achieves sixfold throughput increase in testnet

The Leios upgrade for the Cardano blockchain has demonstrated a sixfold increase in throughput during its first public testnet phase. According to developers at Input Output Global, the protocol reached a peak of 26.8 transaction kilobytes per second, significantly exceeding the 4.51 TxkB/s ceiling of the existing Ouroboros Praos system.

Leios achieves this scalability by introducing parallel capacity through larger Endorser Blocks. This architecture allows the network to process additional transactions via parallel data flows while the underlying Praos chain maintains its existing security model. During the 41-day test, Leios handled 54% of the traffic and processed 18 times the transaction count seen on the Cardano mainnet during the same period.

Despite the technical success, the upgrade introduces economic challenges for ADA holders. As Cardano’s reserve contributions decline over time, the network must rely more heavily on transaction fees to reward stake pool operators and delegators. While Leios provides the necessary capacity to support higher fee volumes, the long-term economic viability of the network depends on whether actual user activity can fill the newly created blockspace.