Cardano (ADA) Passes Polkadot (DOT) As Largest Cryptocurrency Staking Network

Staking is grabbing attention across the crypto market, with investors looking to cash out on greater returns. With the staking sector growing significantly, it appears that Cardano (ADA) is making the most waves in the industry.

Mopping up the Staking Market

According to data from Staking Rewards, Cardano now has an impressive 69 percent of its ADA tokens staked. These figures surpass the former leader, Polkadot, which had 60.87 percent of its supply staked.

.@Cardano $ADA is now officially the biggest Staking Network in the world!https://t.co/XgGdBujAsO pic.twitter.com/2pOzqTCzPH

— Staking Rewards (@StakingRewards) January 9, 2021

Reacting to the news, Jake Nicholson, the founder of the IOHK Foundation (Cardano's developers), compared the blockchain to Polkadot. In a tweet, Nicholson said:

“The UX for staking $ADA is light years ahead of DOT. At one point, I staked $dot with my ledger, and I'm still trying to figure out how to view my balance. With $ada, I simply click on the yoroi extension. This is going to be a huge advantage w/newcomers to the space.”

Cardano isn't the only staking network breaking grounds in the staking sub-sector. Last week, it was reported that Ethereum 2.0 staking on Kraken had hit an all-time high. Citing data from Jeremy Welch, Kraken's Vice President of Product, it was confirmed that the exchange's users had staked over $1 billion in ETH.

Kraken users had locked up about 45.5 million XTZ (worth about $120 million at the time) and 58 million DOT (worth $580 million). Added to the 307,904 ETH ($368.5 million) staked on the platform, totaling over a billion dollars in locked-up funds by users.

Kraken had launched its Ethereum 2.0 staking feature in December. Just four days later, the exchange revealed that over 100,000 ETH, valued at over $60 million at the time, had been deposited into the service.

According to Welch, the increased staking positions reflected growing confidence from investors and traders about cryptocurrencies.

He pointed out that crypto staking was changing people's views about cryptocurrencies, with investors now gunning for higher, long-term gains. The reason why so many investors are interested in staking is quite evident.

Locking up funds provides easy access to passive income—even more income than in traditional savings accounts. The availability of staking pools and other online services also provides a low barrier of entry. Staking is also less energy-reliant like crypto mining and carries far less risk than trading.

ADA Rallies to Flip BCH Temporarily

Beyond the growth of its staking service, Cardano has also been thriving in the open market. Last week, the currency flipped Bitcoin Cash temporarily to become the sixth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap.

The Bitcoin offshoot regained its place, although data from CoinMarketCap shows that the difference in their market caps is less than $1 billion.

The blockchain is also amid an upgrade that should see it grow as a proof-of-stake blockchain. A Binance Academy report shows that investor sentiment around the blockchain seems to be improving, although some upgrades to its smart contract are still expected.

Jimmy has been following the development of blockchain for several years, and he is optimistic about its potential to democratize the financial system. When not immersed in the daily events in the crypto scene, he can be found watching legal reruns or trying to beat his Scrabble high score.