Cardano Climbs to 3rd in Grayscale’s Crypto Rankings – Is an ADA ETF on the Horizon?
Grayscale just reshuffled the deck—and Cardano’s sitting pretty at #3 in their crypto heavyweight list. Move over, silver medalists.
The ETF Question Looms
With ADA now breathing down Bitcoin and Ethereum’s neck in institutional portfolios, the real speculation begins: when—not if—a Cardano ETF gets the green light. Wall Street’s already salivating over the paperwork.
The Institutional Stamp of Approval
Grayscale’s ranking isn’t just a beauty contest. It’s a liquidity magnet. Pension funds and hedge managers treat these lists like a Michelin guide—except the only thing getting roasted here is outdated portfolio allocations.
A Cynic’s Footnote
Let’s be real—half these funds couldn’t explain Proof-of-Stake if their yacht payments depended on it. But they’ll sure as hell front-run the ETF filing.
Cardano (ADA) has climbed to third place in Grayscale’s “Top 10 Crypto Assets by Weekly Returns,” just as the SEC’s decision on a Cardano ETF draws closer. Add in a major airdrop from Cardano’s privacy protocol Midnight, and the network has more eyes on it than it’s had in months.
Here’s how ADA is making its way up the charts.
From Ninth to Third in One Week
In the week ending August 7, cardano posted a 6.3% gain, moving up from ninth place the week before, when it had dropped 8.1%. This puts ADA just behind XRP (+9.7%) and Stellar, but ahead of big names like Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Bitcoin.
Despite the boost, ADA’s year-to-date gains stand at 6.8%, with a market cap of $28.7 billion. Its price slipped 4.79% in the last 24 hours, and is now $0.7719.
Grayscale crypto Snapshot – Assets
Our weekly snapshot of the top 10 #crypto assets by 1 week returns.
–$XRP $XLM $ADA $DOGE #Ethereum $TRX $SOL #Bitcoin #BNB #HYPE pic.twitter.com/ixtQzA1zTU
ETF Verdict Expected by August End
The U.S. SEC is expected to respond to Grayscale’s Cardano ETF application before the end of August, although a final decision could still be pushed to October 23. Optimism has grown after regulators clarified that some staking activities don’t qualify as securities.
Prediction platform Polymarket currently gives the ADA ETF a 75% chance of approval, which is actually down from 89% on July 10th. If it gets the green light, analysts expect fresh institutional inflows, stronger liquidity, and a boost to ADA’s bullish momentum.
Midnight’s Glacier Drop Goes Multi-Chain
Beyond the ETF buzz, Cardano’s ecosystem is getting a push from Midnight, its privacy-focused protocol. This month, Midnight launched the Glacier Drop airdrop across 8 blockchains – including Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon – to spread adoption and showcase its zero-knowledge smart contracts.
Over 35,000 users have claimed more than 739 million $NIGHT tokens (3.08% of supply), with Cardano accounting for 63.4% of claims. The multi-chain approach brings Cardano into new communities while reinforcing its own network.
Network Growth and Leadership Moves
Cardano’s Total Value Locked has jumped by over $100 million since late June, helped by rising meme coin activity. Meanwhile, founder Charles Hoskinson is preparing to release an audit report on IOG’s 2021 ADA token management, following accusations of token theft and has hinted at a possible defamation lawsuit after its release.
I just received the first copy of the audit report. I requested a lot more detail and context in several areas, but it's shaping up quickly. I believe we are on schedule for a mid-August release, assuming the work continues at this pace and there are no delays.
I will read the…
