Cardano has traded within a tight range over the past week as the broader crypto market attempts a recovery. It has faced resistance at $0.75 and found support at $0.69.
Despite the price consolidation, on-chain data reveals a strengthening bullish bias that could pave the way for an upward breakout.
Cardano Stuck in a Range—HODLing Points to a Potential Breakout
Amid ADA’s sideways price movements over the past week, investors have increased their holding times. According to IntoTheBlock, holding time has increased by 77% during the review period.
An asset’s coin holding time is a metric that tracks the average duration of time its tokens are held in wallet addresses before being sold or transferred.
As this time spikes, it signals Cardano holders are opting to hold onto their assets rather than sell. This suggests growing confidence in the asset’s long-term potential. If the trend persists, it could reduce selling pressure and cause ADA to attempt a break above the resistance at $0.75.
Additionally, ADA’s Network Realized Profit/Loss (NPL) remains negative, meaning most Cardano holders would incur losses if they sold now. At press time, this indicator stands at -2.33 million.
This metric measures the total profit or loss realized by investors when they move their coins on-chain, indicating overall market sentiment. When NPL is negative, more investors are at a loss, reducing the incentive to sell.
This would help reduce selling pressure in the ADA market and increase the likelihood of a potential rebound as more investors hold onto their assets instead of realizing losses.
ADA’s Next Move: Break Above $0.75 or Drop to $0.65?
At press time, ADA trades at $0.71. The horizontal trend of its Relative Strength Index (RSI) on the daily chart confirms the coin’s sideways movements.
The RSI indicator measures an asset’s oversold and overbought market conditions. When it is flat, as with ADA, it indicates a balance between buying and selling pressure, meaning there is no clear momentum in either direction. This suggests market consolidation, where the asset trades within a range without strong bullish or bearish dominance.
However, with the steady uptick in ADA accumulation, a break above the resistance at $0.75 could be on the horizon. If successful, ADA could rally toward $0.77.
XRP’s price has surged, approaching the $2.50 mark, driven by positive market cues and Bitcoin’s recent all-time high (ATH).
The altcoin has gained significant momentum as new investors flood into the market, bolstered by whales who have remained resilient even during market declines. This combination of factors is propelling XRP to new heights.
XRP Holders Show Strength
In the past few days, the number of new XRP addresses has seen a sharp uptick, with nearly 7,000 new addresses being created daily. This surge in new addresses is the highest level seen in the last four months, signaling that XRP is gaining significant traction in the market.
As new addresses continue to join the network, demand for XRP is expected to rise. This influx of fresh capital helps to solidify XRP’s presence and market value. The positive trend in new holder activity suggests that XRP could see continued price appreciation as these new investors potentially hold long-term, further boosting its market stability.
XRP’s growth is also supported by the resilience of its whales. Recent data shows that wallets holding at least 1 million XRP have reached an all-time high of 2,743. These whales control over 47.32 billion XRP, worth approximately $115 billion. Their conviction in XRP’s long-term value is helping to stabilize its price, even during market downturns.
Whales’ strategic holding behavior is a key factor in XRP’s ability to weather market fluctuations and maintain upward momentum. Their resilience is a sign of confidence in XRP’s future, contributing to its stability as more retail investors join the network and push the price higher.
XRP has risen by nearly 12% in the last seven days, currently trading at $2.43. The altcoin is hovering just below the resistance level of $2.45, which has proven difficult to break through. However, with the growing support from new holders and the continued backing of whales, XRP is well-positioned to surpass this resistance in the coming days.
If XRP successfully flips $2.45 into support, it could pave the way for further gains. A sustained move past $2.50 would help the altcoin target the next resistance at $2.54. With growing investor interest and a bullish market sentiment, XRP may continue its ascent toward new highs.
However, if market conditions shift and XRP faces selling pressure, it could fall back to the support level of $2.35. A drop below this support would invalidate the bullish outlook and send XRP toward $2.27, signaling a possible price correction. This would depend largely on broader market sentiment and investor behavior in the short term.
Bitcoin Core developer Peter Todd proposed removing arbitrary size limits on OP_RETURN, igniting an intense debate. The entire debacle reveals deep divisions over Bitcoin’s purpose and future.
OP_RETURN is the operation code (opcode) that allows small data payloads to be embedded in Bitcoin (BTC) transactions.
Bitcoin Core Developers and Community Clash Over OP_RETURN Limits
Peter Todd’s proposal #32359 on GitHub would lift long-standing restrictions on how much data can be stored using OP_RETURN, which is currently capped at 80 bytes.
One of Satoshi Nakamoto’s theories’ candidates, Peter Todd, argues that the change would simplify Bitcoin’s codebase. The cryptography developer also highlights its potential to improve efficiency without endangering the network.
As OP_RETURN outputs are unspendable, they do not bloat the Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) set that all Bitcoin full nodes must track for transaction validation.
“The restrictions are easily bypassed by direct substitution and forks of Bitcoin Core,” Todd noted in his GitHub comments.
Peter Todd’s proposal to remove arbitrary limits on OP_Return. Source: GitHub
According to Peter Todd, formalizing higher limits would reflect existing practices and benefit use cases like sidechains and cross-chain bridges.
Many in the Bitcoin community view the change as a dangerous shift toward non-monetary use cases for the pioneer crypto. This is reminiscent of the 2014 OP_RETURN Wars when spam concerns forced developers to reduce the data cap from 80 to 40 bytes before raising it again.
That era saw services like Veriblock flood the chain with data, leading to increased block sizes and transaction fees.
“Sidechain builders shouldn’t influence Bitcoin Core. Bitcoin on its base layer is money and should be only focused on money,” warned Willem S, founder of Botanix Labs.
Willem argues that changing standard rules to make development easier sets a troubling precedent, particularly when workarounds already exist.
Proposal Is A Betrayal of Bitcoin’s Fundamental Principles, Critics Say
Meanwhile, critics call the proposal a betrayal of Bitcoin’s foundational principles. One such critic is Jason Hughes, who works in development and engineering at Ocean Mining. He accuses developers of steamrolling dissent and ignoring broader user concerns.
Hughes said the change could push Bitcoin toward being a worthless altcoin.
“Bitcoin Core developers are about to merge a change that turns Bitcoin into a worthless altcoin, and no one seems to care to do anything about it. I’ve voiced objections, lost sleep over this, and despite clear community rejection of the PR it’s moving,” Hughes lamented.
Nevertheless, others are more optimistic, with some acknowledging the potential of this move to drive network improvement.
“Catering to applications such as sidechains and bridges drives more transactions, which is good for the network,” countered Karbon, a popular user on X.
This sentiment hinges on the assumption that people already bypass the limit anyway. The backlash also stirred broader philosophical objections, with some likening it to the ongoing Ethereum woes.
“Bitcoin should not follow an ‘L2-centric’ roadmap. It is actually, what killed Ethereum. Bitcoin is money and should be focused on that,” another user argued.
Amidst debates on the technical merits of the change, the social impact may be harder to contain.
The proposal has amplified long-simmering concerns over developer centralization and revisited the risk of alienating users who believe Bitcoin should remain a minimal, sovereign monetary protocol.
Whether the proposal moves forward or stalls, the controversy reveals the growing tension between Bitcoin’s purist roots and the pressure to evolve.
Corporate Bitcoin adoption continues its proliferation as more companies pursue accumulation strategies for their treasuries. Firms can benefit from capital appreciation, diversification, and an inflation hedge if executed properly.
However, not all Bitcoin acquisition strategies are created equal. If a company’s sole purpose is to hold BTC without sufficient resources or scale, it can risk total collapse during extended bear market periods. A chain reaction could further amplify downward pressure that could prove catastrophic.
Varying Approaches to Corporate Bitcoin Holdings
Institutional Bitcoin adoption is rising worldwide, with Bitcoin Treasuries data indicating that holdings have doubled since 2024. Public companies now collectively own over 4% of the total Bitcoin supply.
Interestingly, this increase in volume also represents a broadening range of reasons for doing so.
Some companies, most notably Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), intentionally pursue such a playbook to become a Bitcoin treasury holding company. The move worked well for Strategy, whose supply accounts for 53% of total company holdings with over 580,000 BTC.
Other firms, like GameStop or PublicSquare, have taken a different approach, prioritizing exposure over aggressive accumulation. This scenario is optimal for firms that simply want to add BTC to their balance sheets while continuing to focus on their core businesses.
Initiatives like this carry far less risk than companies whose core business solely holds Bitcoin.
However, the increasing trend of companies adding Bitcoin to their financial reserves solely to dedicate themselves to holding Bitcoin carries profound implications for their businesses and Bitcoin’s future.
How Do Bitcoin-Focused Companies Attract Investors?
Building a successful Bitcoin treasury holding company involves much more than just aggressively buying Bitcoin. When a business’s sole purpose becomes Bitcoin holding, it will be exclusively valued based on the Bitcoin it holds.
To attract investors to buy their stock rather than just holding Bitcoin directly, these companies must outperform Bitcoin itself, reaching a premium known as Multiple on Net Asset Value (MNAV).
In other words, they must convince the market that their stock is worth more than the sum of its Bitcoin holdings.
Strategy implements this, for example, by convincing investors that by buying MSTR stock, they aren’t just purchasing a fixed amount of Bitcoin. Instead, they’re investing in a strategy where management actively works to increase the amount of Bitcoin attributed to each share.
If investors believe MicroStrategy can consistently grow its Bitcoin per share, they will pay a premium for that dual ability.
However, that’s just one part of the equation. If investors buy into that promise, Strategy has to deliver by raising capital to buy more Bitcoin.
The MNAV Premium: How It’s Built, How It Breaks
A company can only deliver an MNAV premium if it increases the total amount of Bitcoin it holds. Strategy does this by issuing convertible debt, which allows it to borrow funds at low interest rates.
It also leverages At-The-Market (ATM) equity offerings by selling new shares when their stock trades at a premium to its underlying Bitcoin value. Such a move enables Strategy to acquire more Bitcoin per dollar raised than existing shares, increasing Bitcoin per share for current holders.
This self-reinforcing cycle—where a premium allows efficient capital raises, which fund more Bitcoin, strengthening the narrative—helps sustain the elevated stock valuation beyond Strategy’s direct Bitcoin holdings.
However, such a process involves several risks. For many companies, the model is directly unsustainable. Even a pioneer like Strategy endured heightened stress when Bitcoin’s price dropped.
Nonetheless, over 60 companies have already adopted a Bitcoin-accumulating playbook during the first half of 2025. As that number grows, new treasury companies will face the associated risks even more acutely.
Aggressive BTC Accumulation Risks for Small Players
Unlike Strategy, most companies lack scale, an established reputation, and the “guru status” of a leader like Michael Saylor. These characteristics are crucial for attracting and retaining the investor confidence needed for a premium.
They also don’t generally have the same creditworthiness or market power. Knowing this, smaller players will likely incur higher interest rates on their debt and face more restrictive covenants, making the debt more expensive and harder to manage.
If their debt is collateralized by Bitcoin in a bear market, a price drop can quickly trigger margin calls. During an extended period of downward pressure, refinancing maturing debt becomes extremely difficult and costly for already overburdened companies.
To make matters worse, if these companies have shifted their core operations to focus solely on Bitcoin acquisition, they have no alternative business cushion that generates a stable and separate cash flow. They become entirely dependent on capital raises and Bitcoin’s price appreciation.
When several companies take such a move simultaneously, the consequences for the greater market can go south dramatically.
Does Corporate Bitcoin Adoption Risk a “Death Spiral”?
If many smaller firms pursue a Bitcoin accumulation strategy, the market consequences during a downturn can be severe. If Bitcoin’s price falls, these companies may run out of options and be forced to sell their holdings.
This widespread, distressed selling would inject an enormous supply into the market, significantly amplifying downward pressure. As seen during the 2022 crypto winter, such events can trigger a “reflexive death spiral.”
The different stages of a Bitcoin death spiral. Source: Breed VC.
The forced selling by one distressed company can further drive Bitcoin’s price down, triggering forced liquidations for other firms in a similar position. Such a negative feedback loop can provoke an accelerated market decline.
In turn, highly publicized failures could damage broader investor confidence. This “risk-off” sentiment could lead to widespread selling across other cryptocurrencies due to market correlations and a general flight to safety.
Such a move would also inevitably put regulators on high alert and spook off investors who may have considered investing in Bitcoin at one point.
Beyond Strategy: The Risks of Going “All-In” on Bitcoin
Strategy’s position as a Bitcoin treasury holding company is unique because it was a first mover. Only a handful of companies match Saylor’s resources, market influence, and competitive advantage.
The risks associated with such a playbook are various and, if proliferated, can be detrimental to the greater market. As more public companies move to add Bitcoin to their balance sheets, they must carefully decide between getting some exposure or going all-in.
If they choose the latter, they must cautiously and thoroughly weigh the consequences. Though Bitcoin is currently at all-time highs, a bear market is never entirely out of the question.
