Ledger Live DRep Delegation Support

[Proposal setup] Proposal title

Please provide your proposal title

Ledger Live DRep Delegation Support

[Proposal Summary] Budget Information

Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA

260000

[Proposal Summary] Time

Please specify how many months you expect your project to last

9

[Proposal Summary] Translation Information

Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated

No

Original Language

en

[Proposal Summary] Problem Statement

What is the problem you want to solve?

ADA holders cannot delegate to DReps using Ledger Live, limiting participation in Cardano’s on-chain governance for Ledger wallet users.

[Proposal Summary] Supporting Documentation

Supporting links

• https://github.com/LedgerHQ/ledger-live
,
• https://github.com/StricaHQ
,
• https://strica.io

[Proposal Summary] Project Dependencies

Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'

No dependencies

[Proposal Summary] Project Open Source

Will your project's outputs be fully open source?

Yes

License and Additional Information

MIT License

[Theme Selection] Theme

Please choose the most relevant theme and tag related to the outcomes of your proposal

Infrastructure

[Campaign Category] Category Questions

Describe your established collaborations.

Strica has worked closely with Ledger for over 3 years, delivering and maintaining Cardano Integration, Cardano Staking, and Cardano native token support in Ledger Live. We actively collaborate with the Ledger team for technical compatibility and participate in key community initiatives like CIP development. Our established infrastructure, deep familiarity with Ledger’s codebase, and trusted role in the Cardano ecosystem position us uniquely to implement and maintain DRep functionality in a secure, user-friendly way.

Describe funding commitments.

Strica commits to delivering a robust and thoroughly tested DRep delegation experience within Ledger Live, including wallet UI flows and backend integration. Funding will cover development, testing, Ledger review coordination, and ongoing support. Our goal is to minimize maintenance overhead for Ledger while maximizing long-term usability for Cardano users. Post-launch, we will maintain the feature in coordination with future governance upgrades.

Describe your key performance metrics.

• Successful integration merged into Ledger Live codebase.
• End-to-end testing of DRep delegation, and re-delegation.
• Ability to abstain from governance
• Ledger Live wallet UI approved by Ledger.
• Help Ledger team with preparing drep delegation documentation.
• Positive user feedback from Cardano governance community

[Your Project and Solution] Solution

Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem

Objective

To empower Ledger users with secure and seamless participation in Cardano’s evolving governance model by enabling DRep delegation, and re-delegation in Ledger Live.

Background

As Cardano transitions into a decentralized governance era, the ability for all ADA holders to participate meaningfully, directly or via DReps is critical. With the implementation of CIP-1694, governance becomes not only a protocol responsibility but a community right. Currently, Ledger Live supports staking, but lacks capabilities for the new governance primitives introduced by CIP-1694.

Ledger Live is a primary access point for many long-term ADA holders who value security. Without DRep support, these users are excluded from governance or must resort to unfamiliar tools.

Deliverables

We propose to deliver the following

1. User Interface Integration
   1. UI/UX for searching DRep
   2. UI/UX for listing available DReps
   3. UI/UX for selecting Abstain/No Confidence DRep
   4. UI/UX for delegating to an existing DRep
   5. Ability to view the current delegation status
2. Backend & Blockchain Integration
   1. Integrate APIs for DRep related functionalities into Ledger Live
   2. Build Cardano transactions for dRep delegation and re-delegation
   3. Sync DRep details for display in Ledger Live
3. Testing & Audits
   1. End-to-end QA using Ledger device simulator, and HW devices
4. **Coordination with Ledger **
   1. Ensure all updates conform to Ledger Live code standards
   2. Coordinate UI/UX review with Ledger Live maintainers

[Your Project and Solution] Impact

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

Adding DRep delegation support in Ledger Live will have a far-reaching positive impact

1. **Expanded Governance Participation: **Ledger Live supports hundreds of thousands of users globally. By allowing them to delegate DReps, Cardano governance immediately gains a wider, more diverse participant base.
2. Security-Conscious Voters Enabled: Ledger users represent one of the most security-conscious segments in the ecosystem. Enabling them to participate in governance strengthens Cardano's resilience to malicious DRep strategies, as these users can carefully select responsible DReps.
3. **DRep Ecosystem Growth: **The ability for users to discover, follow, and delegate to DReps in Ledger Live increases DRep competition and visibility. This cultivates a more vibrant governance layer where representation is earned through trust and transparency.
4. **User Empowerment: **The fluidity of delegation allows users to actively manage their voting influence. A well-integrated experience in Ledger Live ensures that even non-technical users can easily shift delegation when their values change.
5. **Ecosystem Alignment: **This integration shows how ecosystem participants (Strica, Ledger, Catalyst) can work together to push forward essential governance infrastructure, demonstrating Cardano’s decentralized spirit in practice.

[Your Project and Solution] Capabilities & Feasibility

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

Strica has a long-standing track record of delivering mission-critical tools and infrastructure for the Cardano ecosystem, consistently with transparency, accountability, and technical excellence. Over the past five years, we have shipped and maintained projects that serve both everyday users and the developer community at scale.

We are the creators and maintainers of:

• Cardanoscan – A trusted and widely used Cardano blockchain explorer, relied on for real-time, accurate blockchain data by users, projects, and developers worldwide.
• Typhon Wallet – A feature-rich, user-friendly Cardano wallet supporting ADA, native tokens, NFTs, staking, and governance, designed for both newcomers and power users.
• Cardano Ledger Live Integration – Implemented ADA, native token, and staking support in Ledger Live, enabling millions of Ledger users to securely manage Cardano assets.
• We are also active open-source contributors, with multiple well-maintained repositories on our GitHub (https://github.com/StricaHQ),,) including:
• @stricahq/bip32ed25519 – A BIP32-Ed25519 key derivation library widely used in Cardano tooling.
• @stricahq/typhonjs – A comprehensive Cardano SDK powering Typhon Wallet and available for integration into third-party applications.
• @stricahq/ouroboros-network-js – Cardano ouroboros networking library for node communication.
• @stricahq/cardano-codec – A library to decode Cardano CBOR data types.
• @stricahq/cardanoscan-js – API services SDK providing high-quality Cardano blockchain data for dapps, analytics platforms, and AI integrations.
• CIP Contributions – Direct participation in Cardano Improvement Proposals, influencing ecosystem standards.

Our work consistently adheres to open standards, best practices, and thorough testing. These efforts have earned us the trust of the community, demonstrated by years of successful product delivery, continuous feature development, and widespread adoption. This proven track record of execution, combined with our public code repositories and transparent development process, demonstrates our ability to deliver meaningful, lasting results for the Cardano ecosystem.

[Milestones] Project Milestones

Milestone Title

Implement dRep Delegation Functionality in Ledger Live Common Codebase

Milestone Outputs

• Implement dRep delegation functionality in the Ledger Live Common codebase, ensuring complete support for governance delegation logic with reliable backend and integration.
• Add support for delegating to an individual DRep, allowing users to securely delegate voting power with proper transaction handling and seamless integration into the governance workflow.
• Add support for auto DRep options including Abstain and No Confidence, giving users flexibility to express their governance stance directly within the Ledger Live Common implementation.

Acceptance Criteria

• Successful integration of the vote delegation logic into the Ledger Live Common codebase, with fully working functionality, proper handling of DRep and auto DRep options, and verification through public draft PRs.

Evidence of Completion

Draft PR submitted to Ledger Live’s public repository with updated code implementing vote delegation.

Delivery Month

2

Cost

72800

Progress

30 %

Milestone Title

Unit Tests and Speculos Bot Tests for Vote Delegation in Ledger Live

Milestone Outputs

• Develop comprehensive unit test cases for vote delegation logic, ensuring full coverage of delegation flows, DRep support, and edge cases, with reliable results across all scenarios.
• Write and implement automated Speculos bot tests for Ledger Live Common to simulate real Ledger device behavior, verifying correct handling of transactions and governance delegation features.

Acceptance Criteria

All unit and Speculos bot tests for vote delegation pass successfully, with results and code changes fully verifiable through a public GitHub PR, ensuring reliable coverage and correct governance logic.

Evidence of Completion

Updated draft PR submitted to Ledger Live’s public repository showing completed unit test coverage and integrated Speculos bot tests, confirming full implementation of the milestone.

Delivery Month

2

Cost

57200

Progress

50 %

Milestone Title

Integrate Vote Delegation Feature into Ledger Live Desktop Application

Milestone Outputs

• Integrate vote delegation functionality into Ledger Live desktop, enabling users to delegate to DReps.
  • UI to search and select dRep
  • Ability to choose Abstain and Co Confidence DRep
  • Functionality to delegate to dRep

Acceptance Criteria

The Ledger Live desktop application fully integrates vote delegation, with seamless UI for DRep selection, Abstain, and No Confidence options, and all implemented code changes made available via public PR.

Evidence of Completion

Updated draft PR to Ledger Live's public repository for the desktop app with the integrated vote delegation feature.

Delivery Month

2

Cost

52000

Progress

70 %

Milestone Title

Implement Vote Delegation Feature in Ledger Live Mobile Application

Milestone Outputs

Implement vote delegation functionality in Ledger Live mobile.

• Mobile App - UI to search and select dRep
• Mobile App - Ability to choose Abstain and Co Confidence DRep
• Mobile App - Functionality to delegate to dRep

Acceptance Criteria

Successful integration of the vote delegation feature in the Ledger Live mobile app, including UI to search and select DReps, support for Abstain and No Confidence, with complete code available in a public PR.

Evidence of Completion

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Delivery Month

2

Cost

39000

Progress

90 %

Milestone Title

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Milestone Outputs

• Finalize the pull request for governance features, ensuring all vote delegation functionality is complete and successfully merged into the Ledger Live repository for public release.
• Prepare and publish a comprehensive project close-out report detailing completed milestones, technical implementation, and outcomes, making it available for public review and transparency.
• Produce and publish a final demo video that demonstrates the governance features, including vote delegation across desktop and mobile, ensuring clarity and accessibility for all users.

Acceptance Criteria

• Successful merging of the final governance feature PR into the official Ledger Live repository, with code publicly available for community verification and long-term maintenance.
• The project close-out report is finalized and made publicly available, containing details of deliverables, development process, and results for community and stakeholder reference.
• The final demo video is produced, demonstrating implemented features and workflows, published on a public platform for accessibility, and reviewed by the community as verification.

Evidence of Completion

The final PR has been merged into the Ledger Live public repository.

Link to project close-out report and demo video

Delivery Month

1

Cost

39000

Progress

100 %

[Final Pitch] Budget & Costs

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

• Vote Delegation Logic Implementation
  • Work:
    • Implement DRep delegation functionality in Ledger Live common codebase.
    • Support delegation to any registered DRep.
    • Support Auto DReps: Abstain and No Confidence.
  • Verification: Draft PR to Ledger Live public repository with updated vote delegation code.
  • Cost: 72,800 ADA - 2 months.
• Automated Testing Development
  • Work:
    • Write comprehensive unit test cases for vote delegation logic.
    • Develop Speculos bot tests for Ledger Live common to simulate Ledger device behaviour.
  • Verification: Updated draft PR with complete unit and Speculos bot tests, all passing.
  • Cost: 57,200 ADA - 2 months.
• Ledger Live Desktop Integration
  • Work:
    • Integrate delegation functionality into Ledger Live desktop app.
    • UI to search and select DReps.
    • Options to delegate to Abstain or No Confidence Auto DReps.
    • Enable delegation submission from the desktop app.
  • Verification: Public PR with working desktop vote delegation integration.
  • Cost: 52,000 ADA - 2 months.
• Ledger Live Mobile Integration
  • Work:
    • Implement delegation functionality in Ledger Live mobile app.
    • UI to search and select DReps.
    • Options to delegate to Abstain or No Confidence Auto DReps.
    • Enable delegation submission from the mobile app.
  • Verification: Public PR with working mobile vote delegation integration.
  • Cost: 39,000 ADA - 2 months.
• Finalization & Project Closure
  • Work:
    • Finalize and merge governance features PR into Ledger Live repository.
    • Publish project close-out report.
    • Record and publish demo video.
  • Verification: Merged PR in Ledger Live repository, with public links to close-out report and demo video.
  • Cost: 39,000 ADA - 1 month.

[Final Pitch] Value for Money

How does the cost of the project represent value for the Cardano ecosystem?

Ledger Live is one of the most widely used interfaces for ADA holders. Supporting DRep functionality here directly empowers a significant segment of the community that otherwise remains passive due to security or convenience concerns.

By funding this initiative:

• **High-leverage impact: **A one-time investment enables tens of thousands of users to participate in governance, multiplying the value of every ADA delegated.
• Protocol alignment: DRep delegation is critical for CIP-1694’s success. This proposal accelerates adoption without placing additional burden on the Ledger team.
• **Future-ready design: **The implementation will be modular, upgradable, and open-source, allowing future enhancements and new governance phases to be integrated smoothly.

This is not merely a UI enhancement; it’s governance infrastructure. The cost represents an investment in Cardano’s decentralized future.

[Required Acknowledgements] Consent & Confirmation

Terms and Conditions:

Yes