Hoskinson Says Monero Is What Bitcoin Should Have Been

Specifically, Hoskinson made the statement on Episode 701 of Gokhshtein’s show, titled “AI & Crypto.” The clip then spread rapidly across X after Gokhshtein Clips posted it on May 1, 2026. Within hours, it became a trending topic on the platform.

“Yeah honestly speaking Monero is what Bitcoin should have been, um, you know they just didn’t have the technology at the time,” Hoskinson said. He specifically pointed to ring signatures, view keys, full chain membership proofs, and ASIC-resistant proof-of-work. According to him, Bitcoin would have included those features if they had existed in 2009.

Why Hoskinson’s Praise Stands Out

Hoskinson rarely endorses competing Layer-1 protocols this directly. In fact, as the founder of Cardano and the architect behind Midnight, he has a direct stake in the privacy narrative himself.

Earlier in 2026, Hoskinson told CoinDesk that Midnight targets mainstream users and “won’t chase Monero/Zcash users.” At the time, he called privacy coin holders “a different demographic.” Because of this, the May 1 praise represents a notable shift in tone.

On top of that, the statement carries extra weight because Hoskinson co-founded Ethereum before building Cardano. When someone at that level names a specific project as the model Bitcoin missed, the crypto community pays attention.

Monero’s Privacy Tech Explained

Bitcoin’s ledger is fully transparent. In contrast, every transaction, address, and balance on Bitcoin is visible to anyone, forever. Monero therefore takes the opposite approach by making privacy mandatory.

For example, ring signatures mix the real sender with decoy signatures. As a result, observers cannot determine who actually sent a transaction. Similarly, stealth addresses generate one-time addresses for each recipient, so the actual owner stays hidden.

In addition, confidential transactions hide the amounts being transferred. Meanwhile, Dandelion++ obscures where a transaction originated on the network. Together, these features make every Monero transaction indistinguishable from every other one.

Consequently, Hoskinson argued that this design better matches Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision of “electronic cash.” Physical cash is private by nature. Bitcoin, despite its ambitions, is not.

Hoskinson Monero Bitcoin Privacy Debate Intensifies

The clip triggered immediate reactions on X. Specifically, privacy advocates and Monero holders celebrated the endorsement. For instance, the Monero Accepted Here account reposted the clip, calling it validation from a major founder.

On the other hand, Bitcoin maximalists pushed back. Their dominant counter-narrative argues that Bitcoin’s transparency is a strength, not a weakness. According to them, it allows for public auditability and regulatory compliance. “Bitcoin’s transparency is its greatest strength,” read the caption on the X trending summary of the debate.

At the same time, regulatory bodies and analytics firms like CipherTrace and Chainalysis have long flagged Monero for money-laundering risks. As a result, those concerns contributed to over 70 exchange delistings throughout 2025, including removals from Binance and Coinbase.

Monero’s Market Resilience Despite Delistings

Despite the exchange exits, Monero’s network has remained active. According to BitInfoCharts, the network processed 24,221 transactions in the past 24 hours. That translates to about 1,009 transactions per hour. The hashrate currently sits at approximately 5.26 GH/s.

In addition, XMR’s market cap recently crossed the $7 billion mark multiple times. According to CoinGecko, it peaked above $7.01 billion on April 27, 2026. It currently sits around $6.96 billion, placing Monero in the #14-17 range.

The price also hovers between $375 and $382. XMR gained approximately 12.4% over the past 30 days and rallied 26% throughout April 2026. Meanwhile, the 24-hour trading volume sits between $108 million and $111 million. Notably, tail emission provides 0.6 XMR per block indefinitely. Because of this, miners remain incentivized even as exchanges pull support.

Midnight Collaboration on the Table

During the same interview, Hoskinson went further. Specifically, he expressed openness to research-level collaboration with the Monero community. The focus would be on post-quantum cryptography and private DeFi through Midnight.

Still, no formal partnership has been announced. The Angry Crypto Show account highlighted Hoskinson’s collaboration comments on X. Monero core contributors, on the other hand, have not responded publicly as of May 2, 2026.

As a result, whether this leads to technical integration remains unclear. Hoskinson has a track record of floating ambitious ideas during interviews. Consequently, the community is waiting for concrete follow-up.

What Comes Next for the Hoskinson Monero Bitcoin Narrative

XMR price action since the statement has been flat. The 24-hour change sits at roughly +0.3-0.4%. If any price impact comes, it may take time to develop as the clip reaches wider audiences.

For now, the crypto community is watching two things. First, whether Monero’s community embraces or resists the attention from a Cardano-aligned figure. Second, whether Hoskinson follows through on the collaboration talk or moves on to other topics.

This is not financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.