Cardano Just Saw A Large Spike In DeFi Activity, Why Is Price Still Struggling Below $0.3?

DeFi activity on the Cardano (ADA) network is showing strong momentum, with Total Value Locked (TVL) spiking by more than 23%. Despite increased on-chain activity, ADA continues to trade below $0.3, with lackluster performance, price swings, and persistent sell-offs over the past months. 

Cardano’s decentralized finance ecosystem is experiencing a notable surge in activity, even as the ADA price remains depressed. As of March 13, 2026, the token sat at around $0.27, down more than 90% decline from its all-time highs, creating a striking disconnect between network growth and price performance.

Notably, Dave, a stake pool operator (SPO) and delegated representative (DRep) for the Cardano blockchain, took to X to highlight the scale of the network’s recent DeFi expansion. He pointed out that despite the recent price weakness, Cardano’s TVL climbed 23.5% in just 12 days, rising from $447.13 million on February 26 to $552.35 million by March 13. This reflects roughly $105 million in additional capital flowing into Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem.

The data show that this increase came from inflows measured directly in ADA rather than in US dollars. Data from DeFiLlama, which tracks TVL in US dollars, shows that Cardano’s DeFi total value stood at about $127 million on February 26 before rising to approximately $142.27 million in the following days, reflecting a more modest gain. 

Additional insight from another Cardano DRep, Dori, on X reveals that the ratio of stablecoin supply to DeFi TVL on Cardano expanded sharply over the past several months. Dori reported that the recent integration of USDCx on Cardano has already produced a significant shift in the network’s stablecoin landscape. 

He noted that the stablecoin-to-DeFi TVL ratio jumped from around 10% last June to 32% at the time of his post, roughly tripling in under a year. He linked part of this increase in the ratio to the decline in the ADA price. Because most of the network’s DeFi value is held in ADA, the continued drop in its market price reduced Cardano’s TVL when measured in US dollars. 

Still, Dori has emphasized that the integration of USDCx is a major step in the growth of DeFi on Cardano. He noted that with minting volume rising steadily, Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem is expected to diversify and mature organically. 

On the technical side, crypto analyst ZAYK Charts on X has revealed that ADA is currently trading inside a falling channel, underscoring an extended downtrend movement since 2025. Looking at the chart, the cryptocurrency has continued to trend lower since September last year, crashing from above $1 to $0.27 as of writing. 

Despite the poor performance, ZAYK Charts maintains an optimistic outlook for the altcoin. He predicts that if ADA breaks out of its resistance near $0.28 at the channel’s upper trendline, its price could surge more than 108% to $0.55.