The Cardano DeFi ecosystem has maintained impressive growth, attracting more capital than Bitcoin-related protocols.
Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem has built on its remarkable growth in the third quarter of the year, further climbing the ranks of leading blockchains by total value locked (TVL). According to data from DeFiLlama, Cardano is now the 11th largest chain by DeFi TVL, with over $240 million.
The DeFi TVL metric measures the value of assets locked on financial applications and protocols built on a specific blockchain. It is considered a key indicator of how much capital a protocol or chain attracts, thus underlining its value to the broader crypto economy.
Following a series of upgrades and the advent of stablecoins, Cardano has enjoyed rapid TVL growth. Interestingly, Cardano’s recent jump to 11th position in the DeFi TVL rankings means it has now surpassed Bitcoin.
Looking at Cardano’s on-chain metric, the data shows roughly 662 million ADA coins (appr. $240.67 million) locked across protocols on the chain. Notably, the amount also represents a new TVL all-time high in ADA. The chain’s TVL has jumped more than 200% since the turn of the year, going from 200 million ADA to its current value.
Cardano DeFi Home to Power Users
As DeFiLlama data shows, Cardano has achieved its remarkable feat of overtaking Bitcoin’s TVL and climbing up the rankings with fewer users. Specifically, while Bitcoin-related protocols boast around 990,000 active addresses, Cardano lags with around 47,000 active addresses.
However, this metric suggests that Cardano is home to power users, referring to users with significantly higher investment capital. Besides, Bitcoin-based protocols such as the Lightning Network (a layer-2 protocol) primarily serve transactional purposes and thus do not require long-term deposits.
Meanwhile, the Coinbase-backed layer-2 network Base is next for Cardano on the ranking. Base currently boasts a TVL of $290 million, meaning Cardano must gain around $50 million in TVL for a chance to enter the top 10 blockchains by DeFi TVL. Yet such a milestone may not seem far-fetched if Cardano continues its impressive growth.
Outside the DeFi supremacy battle, the price of Cardano (ADA) has also increased. The crypto asset has gained 18% in the past seven days, trading around $0.352 when writing.
Disclaimer: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic’s opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
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