In the future, Cardano will enable a wide range of smart contracts as a payment-settling public blockchain. In Cardano, proof of stake is used to verify the integrity of the blockchain. In addition to being more eco-friendly than proof-of-work cryptocurrencies, proof-of-stake also allows for faster and cheaper transactions. In exchange for verifying transactions and receiving rewards, holders of ADA can put their coins on the line. In exchange for a slight reduction in decentralization, Cardano consumes a fraction of the energy that Bitcoin does.