Cardano holds bullish structure as stablecoin market cap surpasses $30 million with USDA launch
- Cardano flaunts a solid bullish structure supported by multiple buy signals as bulls target a breakout above $1.00.
- Cardano’s stablecoin market capitalization increased 30% QoQ, surpassing $30 million in the first quarter.
- The launch of Cardano-native stablecoin attracted more than $5.5 million in a week with transactions exceeding 3,400.
- Cardano ushered in full decentralised governance by enacting a new constitution.
Cardano’s (ADA) price upholds strong bullish sentiment, trading at around $0.78 on Wednesday as cryptocurrencies broadly reach for higher highs. The smart contract token’s bullish outlook follows major milestones achieved in the first quarter, including enacting a new constitution, remarkable growth in its stablecoin market capitalization and diversity in the Decentralised Finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
Cardano ecosystem hits new milestones in Q1
The solid technical structure showcased by Cardano in shorter time frames follows a report by Messari highlighting the network’s performance in the first quarter. As per the report, Cardano ushered in full decentralized governance with active participation from Decentralized Representatives (DReps).
State of @cardano Q1
— Messari (@MessariCrypto) May 21, 2025
Key Update: Cardano enacts its Constitution, ushering in full decentralized governance with active DRep participation.
QoQ Metrics 📊
• Stablecoin market cap ⬆️ 30%
• DeFi diversity score ⬆️ 13%
• Treasury balance (ADA) ⬆️ 5%
Read the full report 👇 https://t.co/UCX6XzB4hT
The governance upgrade bolstered community confidence with a 13% increase in DeFi diversity score and a 5% rise in the ADA Treasury balance.
Cardano’s stablecoin market capitalisation surged 30% QoQ to over $30 million, largely driven by Anzen Finance’s launch of USDA, a native dollar-pegged digital asset on the protocol.
USDA performed incredibly well with over $5.5 million in liquidity streaming over a week. Stablecoin transactions related to USDA exceeded 3,400 in the same period.
The stablecoin landscape on Cardano shows varied dynamics. While USDA has been a standout, other stablecoins like USDM from USDMOfficial saw a 40% QoQ increase, reaching $10 million in market share.
Legacy options, however, had mixed results. Indigo Protocol’s iUSD dropped 20% QoQ. The DJED stablecoin managed a modest 2% gain, per Ruskin’s post on X.
The shift toward reserve-backed stablecoins like USDA aligns with Cardano’s broader strategy to enhance stability and attract institutional interest, especially as regulatory scrutiny looms large over the crypto space.
3/ This shift toward reserve-backed designs on Cardano highlights an ecosystem pivot from synthetic algorithms to fully collateralized models, with USDA’s early traction marking a notable technical milestone.
— Sam Ruskin (@CryptoSam01) May 21, 2025
Looking ahead: Cardano’s upside potential targets $1.00
The short time frame four-hour chart below reinforces the bullish structure with Cardano’s price sitting above key moving averages, ranging from the four-hour 50 Exponential Moving Average (EMA) around $0.75, which is slightly above the 100 EMA and the 200 EMA at $0.73.
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator has maintained a buy signal since Tuesday, reinforcing the bullish momentum. This buy signal occurs when the MACD line (blue) crosses above the signal line (red).
ADA/USDT daily chart
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) indicator’s upward movement at 62 signifies a firm uptrend. Its continued movement toward the overbought region above 70 could see traders buy ADA to take advantage of the potential return above $1.00.
However, if the RSI climbs rapidly toward 70 or beyond, it could signal caution, because overbought conditions often foreshadow a pullback.
Key monitoring levels include the seller congestion at $0.80 (tested on May 15) and $0.86 (tested on May 12). On the downside, the 50 EMA is near $0.75, and the 200 EMA is around $0.73, which could act as support, potentially preventing a drop below $0.70.
Cryptocurrency prices FAQs
Token launches influence demand and adoption among market participants. Listings on crypto exchanges deepen the liquidity for an asset and add new participants to an asset’s network. This is typically bullish for a digital asset.
A hack is an event in which an attacker captures a large volume of the asset from a DeFi bridge or hot wallet of an exchange or any other crypto platform via exploits, bugs or other methods. The exploiter then transfers these tokens out of the exchange platforms to ultimately sell or swap the assets for other cryptocurrencies or stablecoins. Such events often involve an en masse panic triggering a sell-off in the affected assets.
Macroeconomic events like the US Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates influence crypto assets mainly through the direct impact they have on the US Dollar. An increase in interest rate typically negatively influences Bitcoin and altcoin prices, and vice versa. If the US Dollar index declines, risk assets and associated leverage for trading gets cheaper, in turn driving crypto prices higher.
Halvings are typically considered bullish events as they slash the block reward in half for miners, constricting the supply of the asset. At consistent demand if the supply reduces, the asset’s price climbs.
Author
John Isige
FXStreet
John Isige is a seasoned cryptocurrency journalist and markets analyst committed to delivering high-quality, actionable insights tailored to traders, investors, and crypto enthusiasts. He enjoys deep dives into emerging Web3 tren
