Cardano’s Whale Accumulation at 3-Year Highs: Can It Help in ADA Price Upside?

Cardano’s native cryptocurrency ADA is once again on the radar amid the strong whale accumulation. With the Cardano price flirting with $0.15, big players seem to be accumulating for the long term. Experts noted that ADA price could see this final consolidation before the uptrend resumes.

This article does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile, and price projections may not materialize. Readers should conduct independent research and assess their risk tolerance before making investment decisions.

Cardano Price Prepares for Upside Amid Whale Activity

Blockchain analytics firm Santiment reported that large Cardano holders are accumulating the ADA token. This comes despite the bearish sentiment and a weak Cardano price performance.

According to Santiment, wallets holding between 100,000 and 100 million ADA now collectively own more than 25.6 billion ADA, the highest level since February 2023. In contrast, wallets holding fewer than 100 ADA have reduced their holdings by approximately 0.7% over the past four months, indicating continued retail selling.

The analytics firm added that there’s a major FUD around Cardano throughout 2026. As a result, the ADA price is currently trading at a multi-year low. However, Santiment said the ongoing accumulation by whales and sharks suggests larger investors are positioning ahead of a potential recovery.

As per Santiment, there are other fundamental catalysts to support the Cardano ecosystem. It includes progress on the Leios testnet, continued Hydra scaling upgrades, Mithril development, integration of Pyth oracles, and new ecosystem funding initiatives.

Cardano (ADA) Price Shows Signs of Bottom Formation

Crypto analyst Vuori Trading said Cardano’s broader market structure remained constructive despite recent weakness. Vuori Trading publishes technical analysis on X to an audience of about 11,500 followers. However, the analyst does not provide an independently verified trading record, so the long-term ADA projections remain speculative.

According to the analyst, Cardano’s market capitalization needs to reclaim the $6.8 billion level to maintain its bullish structure. If that level is recovered quickly, Vuori Trading projected Cardano’s market capitalization could eventually reach $569 billion over multiple market cycles. At current levels, that would represent an increase of roughly 90 times from today’s valuation, making it a highly speculative long-term scenario rather than a near-term expectation.

However, the analyst cautioned that if the $6.8 billion level turns into resistance instead of support, it could invalidate the bullish thesis. Despite the risk, Vuori Trading said the current market structure remains constructive for ADA holders.

Charles Hoskinson on SBI-Solana Partnership

In a recent development, Japanese financial services giant SBI Holdings announced a partnership with Solana, with a key focus on tokenized assets and stablecoins. This has irked the Cardano community, which noted that SBI has been ditching Cardano for Solana.

SBI Holdings announced the partnership with the Solana Foundation on July 13. The venture will focus on regulated stablecoins, tokenized securities, cross-border payments and institutional blockchain services for the Japanese financial sector. SBI R3 Japan also plans to rename itself SBI Solana Global after completing the required corporate approvals.

The announcement sparked backlash among some ADA holders. They see the SBI-Solana partnership as a setback given Japan’s longstanding support for the Cardano ecosystem.

Responding to criticism on X, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson said commercial partnerships should increasingly be funded through Cardano’s on-chain treasury rather than relying on Input Output Global (IOG) or himself to negotiate every business relationship.