Cardano’s $1 Billion ADA Flees Exchanges—Echoes of 2021’s Run to $3.10 ATH

ADA holders are pulling their coins off exchanges at a staggering rate—$1 billion worth in recent weeks. Sound familiar? It’s the same pattern that preceded Cardano’s 2021 bull run, when prices rocketed to an all-time high of $3.10.

Why the exodus? Some say it’s accumulation before a breakout. Others whisper about staking rewards or just good old-fashioned distrust of centralized platforms (ironic, given how much crypto loves to ‘bank the unbanked’).

One thing’s clear: when this much liquidity vanishes from order books, volatility usually follows. Whether that means a replay of 2021’s highs—or just another ‘wen lambo’ disappointment—depends on who you ask. Meanwhile, Wall Street still thinks we’re all gambling with magic internet money.

Thanks to a confluence of sentiment, market dynamics, and strategic developments, Cardano (ADA) continues to attract significant attention.

As a result, the ninth-largest cryptocurrency is witnessing intensified holding, given that ADA worth nearly $1 billion has exited crypto exchanges since the beginning of the year.

Calling out this development, on-chain metrics provider TapTools pointed out, “Nearly $1 billion worth of cardano ($932M) has been withdrawn from centralized exchanges since the beginning of 2025. The last time outflows approached this magnitude was in 2021, during ADA’s climb to its $3.10 all-time high.”

Based on this analysis, the heightened holding culture witnessed might catapult Cardano to its historical high price of $3.10 from its present price of $0.74, representing a 318.9% climb.

Meanwhile, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson recently gave an expansive glimpse into the network’s ambitious vision, with its privacy-focused sidechain Midnight and AI-powered developments taking center stage. 

Cardano ETF’s Interest Surges

Given that an exchange-traded fund (ETF) can increase institutional investor interest for market diversification and liquidity purposes, the rollout of a Cardano ETF continues to attract notable attention.

According to Polymarket data, the possibility of an ADA ETF being rolled out by the end of 2025 stands at 71%.

Market analyst BuddyKing added, “Cardano’s daily transactions have hit a high of 50,000, supported by strong fundamentals like the potential launch of an ADA ETF. The ADA price is rallying off positive on-chain data, as traders stay alert for a possible breakout.”

Therefore, Cardano continues to witness bullish on-chain metrics.