Cardano (ADA), the eighth-largest cryptocurrencycryptocurrency by market cap, has surged in price today by nearly 12%. ADA is now trading for roughly $0.0930.

This marks the tallest peak that the cryptocurrency has reached in one year. At the end of June last year, ADA was trading right at the $0.90 mark, meaning it has taken roughly 12 months for ADA to regain the losses it has suffered since then.

By February 2019, Cardano was trading for as little as $0.071 per coin. In March of this year, following the coronavirus-induced Black Thursday market crash, ADA sank all the way down to $0.025.

It would not be until late May and early June of this year that Cardano once again began to pick up steam—not coincidentally around the same time that IOHK CEO Charles Hoskinson announced that the long-awaited Shelley upgrade to the blockchainblockchain network would soon be launched.

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson at the Cardano Summit in 2019 (Image: Decrypt)

Cardano releases code for its much-anticipated Shelley upgrade

The Cardano blockchain is set to enter a transformative new era over the coming weeks. Its transition from “Byron,” a static, federated blockchain, to “Shelley,” the dynamic, decentralized version, is due to kick off today, with the release of the Shelley code. (There’s a backup date, 7 July—in case things go pear-shaped.) “Shelley will finally show us whether Cardano's technology has what it takes to become a truly decentralized and scalable global crypto asset,” Juan Villaverde, who leads the...

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Adriana Hamacher

Today’s big price spike follows news that the Shelley upgrade is now underway, just as scheduled. ADA hodlershodlers can now begin moving their funds to updated Cardano wallets, which will make them eligible for staking rewards on the mainnetmainnet once they become available beginning August 18. Shelley is slated to make the Cardano network more decentralized and efficient for community members.

Cardano is by far today’s biggest winner in terms of price movements within the crypto top 10, but the rest of the market is currently seeing small gains. BitcoinBitcoin is up 1.7% while Ethereum hodlers are up 3.2% on the day.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.

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