Cardano Whales Control 67% of ADA Supply as Accumulation Hits 2020 Levels

Large Cardano holders are now controlling a dominant share of the network’s supply, with wallets holding at least one million ADA accumulating 25.09 billion tokens. This represents about 67% of circulating supply, the highest concentration since July 2020, according to Santiment.

The accumulation trend has been steady since late 2023, even as ADA has declined sharply in value, falling roughly 71% over the past nine months. Analysts note that the pattern suggests long-term positioning rather than short-term trading activity.

Cardano TVL Drops 80% as DeFi Activity Slows

Despite whale accumulation, Cardano’s decentralized finance ecosystem has weakened significantly. Total value locked has dropped to around $137 million, down from nearly $686 million in December 2024, marking an 80% decline.

Daily decentralized exchange volume remains low at about $1.95 million, while network fees and revenue also show limited usage. Active addresses remain below 16,000 per day, reflecting reduced engagement across the chain.

Market Signals Point to Long-Term Holding Behavior

The contrast between rising whale concentration and declining network activity suggests ADA is increasingly being held as a long-term asset rather than used in active DeFi participation or trading flows.