user17: As a person who are deciding to buy some ADA currency, what I am getting in return?
So far using ADA I can have:

Voting rights (governance)
Ability to run a pool
Grow your voting power through delegation rewards

Cardano has established community, company and the leader behind it.
It was not designed to be used as a stable coin so the value is volatile by definition.
Holding ADA is different from owning shares of a public company.
So what are the value behind ADA except the reasons listed above and price speculation on exchanges?

user558: Ada cryptocurrency is used to access the Cardano platform. Cardano platform is used to build smart contracts and decentralized applications. The value of the Ada token is derived from utility.

user250: The value of an ADA is based on the market worth of the Cardano platform. The market worth of the platform grows as more blockchain-based services are added to it and are reliant upon the performance & features of the Cardano blockchain.
The growth and popularity of the applications of these services - eg. identity services, education checks, NFT services - will ultimately be what decides how valuable the Cardano platform is. This is why native multi assets is a big deal as it allows quick development & scaling of blockchain services upon the existing decentralised Cardano network.
Because the PoS nodes are paid for their efforts in ADA (even when processing assets that aren't ADA tokens), the value of ADA increases as more tokens, applications and services are dependant on the functionality provided by Cardano and the stakepools.
So to answer the question 'what do I get from buying ADA', the answer is an asset that will hopefully increase in value.

user137: This is very subjective and can only be answered from an opinionated position. With that, it has value, IMO because it has

been developed by a very methodical, mathematical, and scientific method
derivative tokens which are "native", compared to Ethereum, where tokens are implemented via smart contracts – this has one major implication (among other benefits): transaction fees are a small fraction; no "gas" fees are required to execute a contract
a dedicated and sophisticated, and ever expanding, ecosystem of people and companies working to solve real problems, create valuable businesses, etc.
outreach programs targeting new developers, governments, and education
a treasury system where regular rounds of Catalyst fund winning Cardano-based projects via grants
smart contracts that can be mathematically verified, enabling greater trust in the proper handling of funds


17: <p>As a person who are deciding to buy some ADA currency, what I am getting in return?</p>
<p>So far using ADA I can have:</p>
<ol>
<li>Voting rights (governance)</li>
<li>Ability to run a pool</li>
<li>Grow your voting power through delegation rewards</li>
</ol>
<p>Cardano has established community, company and the leader behind it.</p>
<p>It was not designed to be used as a stable coin so the value is volatile by definition.</p>
<p>Holding ADA is different from owning shares of a public company.</p>
<p>So what are the value behind ADA except the reasons listed above and price speculation on exchanges?</p>
 558: <p>Ada cryptocurrency is used to access the Cardano platform. Cardano platform is used to build smart contracts and decentralized applications. The value of the Ada token is derived from utility.</p>
 250: <p>The value of an ADA is based on the market worth of the Cardano platform. The market worth of the platform grows as more blockchain-based services are added to it and are reliant upon the performance &amp; features of the Cardano blockchain.</p>
<p>The growth and popularity of the applications of these services - eg. identity services, education checks, NFT services - will ultimately be what decides how valuable the Cardano platform is. This is why native multi assets is a big deal as it allows quick development &amp; scaling of blockchain services upon the existing decentralised Cardano network.</p>
<p>Because the PoS nodes are paid for their efforts in ADA (even when processing assets that aren't ADA tokens), the value of ADA increases as more tokens, applications and services are dependant on the functionality provided by Cardano and the stakepools.</p>
<p>So to answer the question 'what do I get from buying ADA', the answer is an asset that will hopefully increase in value.</p>
 137: <p>This is very subjective and can only be answered from an opinionated position. With that, it has value, IMO because it has</p>
<ul>
<li>been developed by a very methodical, mathematical, and scientific method</li>
<li>derivative tokens which are &quot;native&quot;, compared to Ethereum, where tokens are implemented via smart contracts – this has one major implication (among other benefits): transaction fees are a small fraction; no &quot;gas&quot; fees are required to execute a contract</li>
<li>a dedicated and sophisticated, and ever expanding, ecosystem of people and companies working to solve real problems, create valuable businesses, etc.</li>
<li>outreach programs targeting new developers, governments, and education</li>
<li>a treasury system where regular rounds of Catalyst fund winning Cardano-based projects via grants</li>
<li>smart contracts that can be mathematically verified, enabling greater trust in the proper handling of funds</li>
</ul>
