Cardano (ADA) is currently being overpowered by the bears as its price is constantly being battered amid a broader market sentiment downturn. While the coin is currently changing hands at a price of $0.2631 atop a 1.36% plunge in the past 24 hours, the obvious succor for the protocol lies in the growth being picked up in its decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
The Cardano DeFi offshoot is arguably the most vibrant aspect of the proof-of-stake (PoS) protocol today. Irrespective of the current outlook of the blockchain, the embrace of its associated dApps and their offerings are a testament to the value that is being brought into the broader Web3.0 ecosystem through Cardano.
Per data from DeFiLlama, Cardano's current total value locked (TVL) is pegged at $160 million. While this figure pales in comparison to other mainstream PoS protocols like Ethereum and Solana, there has been a steady rise in the actual number of ADA coins locked in Cardano DeFi smart contracts from the start of the year.
According to available data, the ADA lockup has grown from 554.76 million ADA from the start of the second quarter to 602.78 million as of today.
Cardano nursing adoption hopes
As far as the Cardano protocol is concerned, the goal to dominate the crypto ecosystem is highly based on how well offerings from innovators on the network are embraced by the public.
This adoption is poised to fuel the demand for ADA coins, which can further drive up the way the coin is acquired on secondary markets. While Cardano was recently tagged by the U.S. SEC as a security, alongside other top altcoins, protocol founder Charles Hoskinson confirmed recently that the regulator is not coming after the coin.
The emphasis on protocol upgrades and developments, as well as adherence to the principles of decentralization, have generally helped position ADA as a coin that will win in the long term.
Tomiwabold Olajide
Alex Dovbnya