Canton Development Fund

The Canton Development Fund supports open development that strengthens the Canton ecosystem.

This repository is used to submit Development Fund proposals through GitHub Pull Requests.

Start Here

Before submitting a Development Fund proposal, please review the Foundation's current strategic roadmap and Requests for Proposals.

Development Fund proposals follow one of two paths:

RFP-aligned proposals respond to a published Foundation Request for Proposals and should be submitted under the appropriate category in /rfps/.
Individual initiatives are community-generated proposals outside the published roadmap and should continue to be submitted under /proposals/.

Applicants should review the roadmap before submitting and clearly identify which path applies to their proposal.

Overview

The Development Fund accelerates high-quality contributions that increase the utility, security, and long-term resilience of the Canton Network.

The fund supports work such as:

Core protocol research and development
Developer tools and SDKs
Security reviews, audits, and hardening
Reference implementations
Critical ecosystem infrastructure
DeFi liquidity seeding where required for early utility

If your proposal delivers a shared benefit to the Canton ecosystem, it may be eligible.

How the Fund Works

The program was established through governance:

CIP-0082 allocates 5% of future Canton Coin emissions to the Development Fund
CIP-0100 defines the governance and review process

Unlike many networks, Canton does not use a premine or treasury. Funding comes from future network rewards to create a durable, predictable source.

The Canton Foundation acts as a neutral facilitator.

Funding decisions are made by the Tech & Ops Committee, with final approval by the Voting Group.

Program structure

Quarterly funding allocation
Milestone-based payments
Funding denominated in Canton Coin (CC)
Transparent, community-visible process

Who Can Submit

You may submit a proposal if you are:

A Canton Foundation member
A contributor organization
An external team or individual

External contributors must have a Champion to support the proposal.

All proposals are evaluated based on impact, quality, feasibility, and alignment, not on who submits them.

The committee will review no more than 3 proposals a week from one organization / champion.

How to Submit a Proposal

All proposals are submitted via Pull Request.

Step 1: Review the PR Template

Use the Development Fund template located at:

.github/pull_request_template.md

The template requires:

Objective and scope
Technical approach
Architectural alignment
Milestones and deliverables
Acceptance criteria
Funding request and milestone breakdown

Step 2: Create Your Proposal

Fork this repository
Create a new branch
Add your proposal as a Markdown file under:

proposals/<project-name>.md

Complete the content using the PR template structure

Step 3: Open a Pull Request

Use the following title format:

Proposal: <Project Name>

Once submitted, your proposal will enter the review process.

Review Process

Please see the Review Process

What Makes a Strong Proposal

Successful proposals typically include:

A clear problem and ecosystem value
Deliverables that can be objectively verified
Realistic timelines and scope
Open-source or reusable outputs where appropriate
Evidence of technical capability
Adoption or distribution plan

Strategic Roadmap & Requests for Proposals

The Technology & Operations Committee publishes a strategic roadmap identifying areas where the Canton Foundation is actively seeking community contributions and expects to prioritize Development Fund resources.

Review the current roadmap here:

2026–2028 Strategic Roadmap & 2026–2027 Requests for Proposals

RFP-aligned proposals should be submitted under the appropriate category in:

/rfps/

Individual initiatives that do not respond to a published RFP may still be submitted under:

/proposals/

A published RFP does not guarantee funding. All proposals remain subject to technical review, milestone review, available budget, and Technology & Operations governance.

Governance Structure (CIP-0100)

The Development Fund is administered through:

Voting Group

5 voting members and 2 alternates
Final approval of funding decisions

Security Subcommittee

Reviews security-sensitive proposals

Core Contributors Group

Provides technical input and prioritization

Operations Subcommittee

Oversees reporting, communications, and operational coordination

Payment Terms

Funding is denominated in Canton Coin (CC)
Payments are milestone-based and released after acceptance
Projects longer than 6 months may be re-evaluated for price volatility
Funding may be paused or stopped if milestones are not met

Scope Guidance

Eligible work includes contributions that are a common good for the ecosystem:

Protocol improvements
Shared developer tooling
Security and reliability enhancements
Reference implementations
Infrastructure used by multiple participants

The fund does not support purely private or proprietary work.

Questions

Email: dev-fund@canton.foundation

Additional information:

Why This Fund Exists

Canton adoption is growing rapidly. The Development Fund ensures the network evolves with:

Open participation
Transparent governance
Predictable funding
Long-term ecosystem resilience

Goal: Support development that makes Canton stronger for everyone.

Repository License

Proposal documents in this repository are dedicated to the public domain under CC0-1.0 (Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal).

This allows proposals to be freely discussed, quoted, and referenced during the governance and review process.

If a proposal includes software or technical artifacts, those components should specify their own license (commonly Apache-2.0 within the proposal or associated repository.

Questions

For community discussion, feedback, or broader ecosystem input:

Mailing list: grants-discuss@lists.sync.global

For private questions about a proposal or submission process:

Email: dev-fund@canton.foundation

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