Cardano In Q3: ADA’s Price Falls, But Liqwid’s TVL Soars By 77.2%

Key Takeaways:

• Cardano completed phase one of the Chang Hard Fork, advancing decentralized governance for ADA holders.
• DeFi TVL grew 13.3% QoQ, driven by Liqwid Finance and USDM’s significant market cap surge.
• Cardano’s Q3 network activity declined, with average daily transactions dropping 15.9% and ADA price slipping to $0.37.

Cardano marked a pivotal moment in its development with the completion of the first phase of the Chang Hard Fork in September 2024. This upgrade initiated a technical foundation for decentralized on-chain governance, empowering ADA holders to influence network decisions, according to Messari’s state of Cardano Q3 2024 report.

State of Cardano Q3

Key Update: Cardano completed phase one of the Chang Hard Fork, paving the way for decentralized on-chain governance by ADA holders.

QoQ Metrics 📊
• DeFi TVL ⬆️ 13.3%
• Liqwid's TVL ⬆️ 77.2%
• USDM market cap ⬆️ 145.5%

Read the full report 🔗… https://t.co/k8L9CkF4b8 pic.twitter.com/oCYBdR7Qna

— Messari (@MessariCrypto) December 20, 2024

For now, it has been the Interim Cardano Constitution and Interim Constitutional Committee that have guided transitions in governance. During this period, Delegate Representatives were also introduced, permitting token holders to delegate their voting powers. The second phase is expected to go live in 2025; it will also involve completion of the governance system at Cardano under CIP-1694.

Intersect, leader of these changes, in turn, has driven collaborations among the ecosystem: the organization readying the network for full decentralization of governance through an array of initiatives such as the testnet called SanchoNet and a variety of different community projects.

Cardano DeFi Shines with 13.3% TVL Growth, Dapp Activity Slumps

Despite a dip in network activity, Cardano’s DeFi sector showed resilience, with total value locked (TVL) climbing 13.3% QoQ to $231.6 million. Liqwid Finance led this growth, recording a remarkable 77.2% TVL increase, reaching $47.1 million.

Minswap remained the most utilized Cardano-based decentralized exchange and represented 28.5% of all Dapp transactions. In the same period, USDM, the network’s biggest stablecoin, saw its market cap surge 145.5%, a testament to the improving trust of collateralized assets in the chain.

Overall, Dapp activity was challenged, with average daily decentralized application transactions plunging 54.2% QoQ, while NFT trading posted similar declines: sales and volume decreased by 19.1% and 22.4%, respectively.

Cardano Faces Mixed Signals in Q3

Meanwhile, ADA’s economic metrics were mixed in Q3. ADA’s price shed 4.8% to $0.37, leading to a decline of 6.9% in market capitalization at $13 billion. Revenue coming from transaction fees, critical to keeping the network up and running, came in at $0.51 million, posting a QoQ drop of 31.2%.

The average number of daily transactions and active addresses decreased by 15.9% and 14.5% QoQ, respectively, signalling lower user activity. ADA’s staking rates dropped by 4.1% in the staking sector, mirroring ADA’s price plunge.

Cardano, however, maintained a strong treasury, as indicated by its dollar value—increasing 3% QoQ to $622.92 million and promising a strong support system for the chain’s projects moving ahead.

Related Reading | Fake ‘Bitcoin’ Satoshi: Wright Faces Suspended Prison Sentence for Contempt of Court