TLDR
- Cardano (ADA) has broken out of a bullish flag formation, with price targets of $0.91, $1.10, and $1.30
- ADA has been added to the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund, boosting institutional interest
- Currently trading around $0.80, ADA has gained 19.59% in the last week
- Some analysts predict ADA could reach its previous all-time high of $3.10 in 2025
- Cardano faces ecosystem challenges with relatively low DeFi activity compared to competitors
Cardano (ADA) is showing strong bullish momentum with a price breakout that has crypto experts eyeing targets up to $1.30. Currently trading at $0.80, the cryptocurrency has gained nearly 20% over the past week despite facing challenges in developer adoption and ecosystem activity.

Recent technical analysis reveals that Cardano has broken out of a large bullish flag formation on the 2D chart that began in November 2024. This breakout is confirmed by increased trading volume and buying pressure.
Price targets have been set by analysts at $0.91, $1.10, and $1.30 as the bullish trend continues. The chart pattern suggests ADA may see substantial gains if the current momentum persists.
Trading volume for ADA has decreased to $1.01 billion, down 33.05% in the last 24 hours. However, the weekly gain of 19.59% shows growing investor confidence in the cryptocurrency.

Grayscale Inclusion Boosts Institutional Appeal
A major development for Cardano is its recent addition to the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund. This inclusion places ADA alongside leading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, marking increased institutional interest and market legitimacy.
Grayscale ranked Cardano $ADA as the 4th best-performing top 10 crypto last week. 🔥
They've filed for a standalone ADA ETF and also plan to convert their Large Cap Fund, which includes ADA, into an ETF.
Both are pending SEC approval. pic.twitter.com/5pxBj1zKD5
— Cardanians (CRDN) (@Cardanians_io) May 12, 2025
ADA is currently the fourth best-performing asset among the top 10 holdings in the Grayscale fund. This institutional backing is expected to contribute to the token’s long-term stability and growth potential.
The Grayscale inclusion increases ADA’s exposure to institutional investors, which could drive further price appreciation as more traditional finance players enter the cryptocurrency market.
Market forecasts for ADA in 2025 are positive. After a drop to $0.84 in January 2025, experts predict ADA will overcome resistance levels and potentially reach $1.79 by year-end. Some analysts even suggest ADA could approach its previous all-time high of $3.10.
Ecosystem Challenges Remain
Despite price growth, Cardano faces challenges in ecosystem development. The network has not attracted as many developers as competitors like Ethereum, Sui, and Solana.
According to DeFi Llama, Cardano has 42 DeFi applications with a total value locked (TVL) of $470 million. While this represents an increase from $320 million last month, the growth is largely attributed to ADA’s price rise rather than increased activity.
In ADA terms, the TVL has actually fallen from 770 million ADA in October to 562 million today. Cardano’s decentralized exchanges, including Minswap, Splash Protocol, and MuesliSwap, processed just $3.28 million in transactions over 24 hours, far less than competitors.
Cardano hosts only $30 million in stablecoins, a tiny fraction of the industry’s $245 billion total. This metric is often used to gauge ecosystem health.
The upcoming Consensus event in Toronto will feature Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson as a key speaker. He is expected to discuss BitcoinOS and the integration of Bitcoin into the Cardano ecosystem, which could enable Bitcoin staking through a zero-knowledge approach.
From a technical perspective, ADA has formed an inverse head and shoulders pattern and moved above both the 50-day and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages. The price has also broken above a descending trendline that connected high points since December 2024.
These technical indicators support the bullish outlook for Cardano, with a potential target of $1.32, representing a 63% increase from current levels. However, a fall below the descending trendline would invalidate this outlook.
ADA is currently trading at its highest point since March 7, showing resilience despite ecosystem challenges.
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