ADA Drops Sharply on Volume Spike, Yet Leios Hard Fork Keeps Long-Term Outlook Intact

Cardano’s native token ADA slipped nearly 4% in the past 24 hours, extending recent declines even as buzz around the network’s anticipated Leios upgrade gathers momentum. Prices fell to $0.5818, while trading volume surged 38.4% above the 7-day average, reflecting heightened market activity, according to CoinDesk Research’s technical model.

On Thursday, Input Output Global (IOG) — the development team behind Cardano — posted new insights on X about the forthcoming Leios upgrade, which aims to boost transaction throughput and overall network efficiency. The update highlighted features such as endorsements, designed to improve performance during peak loads without sacrificing security or decentralization.

Leios, first introduced in November 2022, represents a new iteration of Cardano’s Ouroboros consensus protocol. The upgrade targets existing bottlenecks not due to hardware limits, but algorithmic constraints in previous protocols like Praos and Genesis. Leios proposes a redesigned architecture, featuring tiered transaction fees, faster chain synchronization, and better resource prioritization — improvements seen as crucial for Cardano’s next growth phase.

While the technical overhaul is complex, developers view it as potentially transformative. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson shared on May 10 that the Leios rollout could happen as early as 2026, speeding up the timeline from its original 2028 target.

Meanwhile, blockchain data points to accumulation behavior among committed investors. Long-term ADA holders continue withdrawing tokens from centralized exchanges, suggesting confidence in Cardano’s future.

Technical Highlights

24-hour price range: ADA fluctuated across a 7.15% band, dropping from $0.605 to a low of $0.562 before modestly rebounding.
Support zone: Significant trading activity (peaking at 175M ADA) established support between $0.562 and $0.576 during the 17:00 hour.
Consolidation levels: ADA is trading within a tight range, with support at $0.573–$0.582 and resistance around $0.582–$0.588.
Volume pattern: Declining sell-side volume into support zones suggests possible accumulation.
Intraday action: A brief dip late in the session saw ADA slide from $0.585 to $0.582, forming a small descending channel.
Key moments: Notable volume spikes occurred at 12:39 and 12:48, each exceeding 1 million units, marking crucial inflection points.
Breakdown and recovery: The $0.583 support was briefly pierced during the midday sell-off but prices quickly stabilized near $0.582.