Cardano is currently trading near $0.20, following a weekend decline after Grayscale withdrew its application for a Cardano exchange-traded fund (ETF). The move arrived just as the network celebrated a milestone toward ETF eligibility, leaving the Cardano community disappointed after brief optimism.
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AAPLGrayscale’s Cardano ETF withdrawal
Grayscale, one of the world’s largest digital asset investment firms, submitted a Form RW to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 7, officially withdrawing its S-1 registration statement for the Grayscale Cardano Trust ETF. This action halted any immediate prospects for a Cardano-related ETF being listed in the United States.
The decision to withdraw the registration came before Cardano achieved its ETF eligibility milestone. On August 9, Cardano marked six consecutive months of performing regulated CME futures trading, a requirement under the SEC’s Generic Listing Standards for spot ETF listings. This milestone had led many observers to expect that a spot ADA ETF might move toward a streamlined approval process.
However, the optimism faded fast once Grayscale’s withdrawal became public. Market participants who had anticipated an ETF decision in late October 2026, under the proposed ticker GADA, now see that timeline as no longer feasible.
Grayscale indicated in its SEC filing that the Cardano ETF Registration Statement has not been declared effective, nor has it issued or sold any securities in connection with the proposed ETF or its prospectus.
Market performance and price outlook
ADA declined by 0.5% over the past 24 hours to $0.195, having reached an intraday high of $0.199. The token experienced losses over the weekend but recovered early Monday after touching a low of $0.194. Analysts noted the potential for a return to $0.211 if the rebound sustains, which could further open the door to $0.232, corresponding to the daily 200 simple moving average (SMA). Should the correction deepen, technical support is expected at $0.17.
| Price Level | Status |
|---|---|
| $0.194 | Weekend low |
| $0.195 | Current price |
| $0.199 | Intraday high |
| $0.211 | Short-term target |
| $0.232 | 200 SMA target |
| $0.17 | Key support |
Cardano milestones and technical progress
Despite the ETF setback, Cardano achieved another significant development on its blockchain roadmap. The scope for the first phase of the Dijkstra hard fork is now finalized, with the aim to deliver Phase 1—featuring Nested Transactions and Linear Leios—to the mainnet by the end of 2026. Phase 2, named Peras, is expected to follow in an intra-era hard fork in the second quarter of 2027, incrementally expanding Cardano’s network capabilities.
Mini dictionary: Dijkstra hard fork – A planned upgrade on the Cardano blockchain aimed at adding features such as Nested Transactions and Linear Leios to improve scalability and transaction efficiency. The initiative consists of two implementation phases planned through 2027.
In a separate interoperability update, Cardano has established connectivity with Injective, a Layer 1 blockchain focused on finance applications. This new bridge enables the transfer of ADA and INJ tokens across both ecosystems, opening up fresh opportunities for users and developers in both networks.
The Cardano community initially celebrated reaching six months of regulated CME futures trading, marking a crucial requirement for ETF eligibility, but expressed disappointment after Grayscale’s application withdrawal halted the expected progress.
