A rare chain split on the Cardano blockchain has triggered a complex technical response, involving FBI involvement and the resignation of an employee. The incident originated from a faulty delegation transaction exploiting a long-standing deserialization bug first discovered in 2022. This disruption impacted the $14 billion network, causing exchanges to pause services and DeFi platforms to experience inconsistencies. Cardano’s developer teams swiftly responded with emergency patches, and the network stabilized after hours of simultaneous operation of two competing chains. While the ADA token price dropped following the split, it has since recovered, trading near $0.41. The incident is being investigated by authorities, including the FBI, who confirmed they have been notified of the issue. The developer responsible for the transaction, identified as