Cardano whales now hold 67% of ADA supply in highest share since 2020

Large holders of Cardano's $ADA token have been quietly stacking for two years while the rest of the chain has gone quiet.

Wallets holding at least one million $ADA now control 25.09 billion tokens, an all-time high, representing 67.47% of the existing supply, per Santiment. That is the highest concentration in whale hands since July 2020, with the accumulation trend running uninterrupted since December 2023.

The token has shed 71% of its market cap over the past nine months, indicating that the largest holders have been buying into the price weakness.

Cardano's DeFi footprint has gone the opposite direction. Total value locked sits at $137 million, down from a December 2024 peak of around $686 million, an 80% drop, per DefiLlama.

Daily DEX volume across the entire chain is $1.95 million. Chain fees over the past 24 hours came in at $1,767. Chain revenue was $353, and active addresses on a 24-hour basis are 15,975.

These numbers suggest a chain where the main token is being accumulated for long-term investment rather than to capitalize on any on-chain opportunities.

$ADA traded at $0.27 in Asian hours Friday, with a market cap of $9.96 billion. The token has been one of the worst performers among the top 10 since the broader market topped in late 2024, and the whale accumulation has been happening through that drawdown rather than after it.