Cardano (ADA) has regained its leading position in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, with its Total Value Lock (TVL) in Q3 2025 soaring 28.7%, its highest level since early 2022.
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According to Messari’s latest Cardano Status Report, ADA’s market capitalization rose 42.5% to $29.5 billion, driven by the network’s DeFi growth and solid financial expansion, indicating a strong recovery for the ecosystem.
ADA's price trends to the downside on the daily chart. Source: ADAUSD on Tradingview
Core protocol and financial extensions accelerate Cardano momentum
Major protocols such as Liqwid and Minswap largely drove Cardano’s DeFi momentum, with Liqwid’s TVL increasing 50.8% to $101.6 million, with Minswap dominating 74.7% of DEX trading volume. Cardano’s treasury balance has also increased to $1.3 billion, demonstrating the new confidence of developers and the resilience of the ecosystem.
Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson praised the community’s growing decentralization efforts and emphasized that the DeFi value of the ADA ecosystem could grow into “seven or eight figures” if users continue to adopt the native protocol.
Whales accumulate 348 million ADA towards price recovery
Whale activity has increased dramatically even though recent market instability has pushed ADA below $0.6. According to Santiment’s on-chain data, from November 7th to 10th, large holders accumulated 348 million ADA, worth more than $204 million, which is almost 0.94% of the total supply.
The buying spree coincided with a modest 21% rebound in the price of ADA from its low of $0.49 earlier this month, as investors bet on the possibility of the stock breaking above $0.6. Analysts have highlighted the formation of a bullish “cubic” pattern, which could move higher towards $0.73 and even higher in the next bullish phase.
However, despite the whale’s accumulation, overall network activity has weakened slightly, with daily active addresses decreasing. This divergence suggests that while individual users are cautious, institutional and high-net-worth investors are looking for long-term gains.
Cardano becomes ISO 20022 compliant and expands its roadmap
The inclusion of Cardano as a digital asset compliant with the ISO 20022 international financial messaging standard further strengthens that institutional narrative. Charles Hoskinson reaffirmed that ADA fully supports this framework and ranks alongside assets such as XRP and XLM in global payments interoperability.
In parallel, Cardano achieved full community-driven governance in September 2025 and continues to roll out upgrades such as Halo2-Plutus, which enhances privacy and scalability.
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The Cardano Foundation’s updated roadmap focuses on expanding DeFi liquidity, growing stablecoin adoption, and tokenizing real-world assets, demonstrating a mature ecosystem ready for the next wave of blockchain adoption.
Cover image from ChatGPT, ADAUSD chart from Tradingview