While Cardano’s ADA token faces significant selling pressure in the markets, on-chain data reveals a contrasting narrative of accumulation by large-scale investors. This activity coincides with a key technological announcement from founder Charles Hoskinson regarding enhanced transaction privacy on the network.

Whale Activity Defies Market Sentiment

Despite ADA’s price hovering around $0.32 after a sharp correction, wallets holding between 100,000 and 100 million ADA have been net buyers over the past two months. These entities acquired approximately 454.7 million tokens in total. A substantial portion of this buying, nearly 300 million ADA, occurred in a concentrated period between January 28 and 29.

This institutional interest stands in stark contrast to the behavior of smaller retail investors. Wallets containing less than 100 ADA have been net sellers in recent weeks, offloading over 22,000 tokens. This divergence highlights a notable split in sentiment between large and small holders.

Hoskinson Announces Privacy-Focused Stablecoin Integration

The accumulation comes as Cardano’s founder, Charles Hoskinson, used a tour in Japan to reveal plans for integrating USDCx, a privacy-centric stablecoin, into the Cardano ecosystem. This strategic move is designed to bring greater transaction confidentiality to the blockchain by utilizing zero-knowledge proofs.

The integration aims to attract liquidity from the Circle universe to Cardano. Reports indicate that a budget of up to 70 million ADA has been allocated for ecosystem integrations related to this development, though specific technical implementation timelines have not yet been finalized.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Cardano?

ADA’s Technical Picture Remains Challenged

The fundamental development is currently overshadowed by a harsh market correction. ADA has shed roughly 11% of its value over the past week, trading near its 52-week low. Market data reflects the bearish sentiment:

• Open Interest Decline: Futures open interest dropped by about 8% to approximately $607 million, signaling a retreat by leveraged traders.
• Liquidations: Long positions worth around $2 million were liquidated in a 24-hour window.
• Technical Indicators: The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) sits at 35, approaching oversold territory. The asset is currently trading below all its major moving averages (50-day, 100-day, and 200-day).

The $0.30 level is now viewed as critical support. A decisive break below this point could open the path toward October’s lows around $0.27.

Macro Environment and Weekend Outlook

The broader macroeconomic backdrop, characterized by stable Federal Reserve interest rates between 3.50% and 3.75% and Bitcoin trading below $84,000, continues to foster a risk-averse climate. The immediate focus for ADA is whether the $0.30 support can hold over the weekend.

The medium-term question is whether the combination of sustained whale accumulation and the new utility promised by USDCx can ultimately overcome the present technical weakness. This will largely depend on a broader stabilization in overall market sentiment.

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