ADA price surges following key developments, increased network activity, and positive market sentiment.

Cardano’s ZK Smart Contracts Boost Price

Cardano’s ADA token has witnessed a significant price surge, rising over 10% in the last 24 hours to reach $1.15, marking a multi-year high. The rally follows the launch of the first zero-knowledge (ZK) smart contract on the Cardano mainnet, a development hailed as a major milestone for the network.

Input Output, the organisation behind Cardano’s development, successfully conducted the first Halo 2 zk-SNARK-powered transaction. The process involved locking and unlocking funds using a Zero Knowledge proof with minimal costs, showcasing the technology’s scalability and security benefits.

Increased DeFi Activity Drives Adoption
Cardano’s DeFi ecosystem has experienced rapid growth, as evidenced by the total value locked (TVL) on the network, which climbed 200% in three weeks, reaching an all-time high of $598 million on November 25.

Key projects such as Indigo’s collateralised debt protocol and Minswap, a decentralised exchange, have driven this growth. Indigo saw a 154% increase in TVL over the last month, while Minswap’s TVL grew by 113% to $106 million. This heightened user activity has boosted ADA demand, positively impacting its price.

ADA Outperforms Bitcoin
ADA has outperformed Bitcoin in November, with gains of 200% month-to-date compared to BTC’s 39% against the US dollar. The ADA/BTC ratio hit a nine-month high of 0.00001096 on November 23, continuing a sustained uptrend since November 6.

Technical Indicators Signal Further Gains
ADA’s price movement has formed an ascending parallel channel, indicating bullish momentum. The token is trading near support at $0.960, with potential targets of $1.078 and $1.20 if bullish sentiment persists.

Additionally, a bullish crossover on November 24 between the 100-day and 200-day simple moving averages supports the view of further upward momentum, leaving ADA poised for continued gains.