The cryptocurrency market is gradually coming to its senses after a long period of depression. The main role in this was played by Bitcoin, which holds the key support zone and thereby allows the altcoin market to recover. The index of the altcoin season is around the 60 mark, which is a prerequisite for a possible outbreak of growth of digital coins. The clear leader in growth over the past seven days is the Cardano coin, which literally bursts into 2022.

Cardano is on fire

Over the past seven days, the altcoin has shown an increase of 32% and, as of January 17, is trading in the area of the local support zone at around $1.53. Over the past day, the cryptocurrency has grown in price by 12% due to the implementation of the first provisions of the roadmap for 2022. As of mid-January, Cardano is the most promising and fastest growing altcoin in the top 30 digital assets.

Cardano DeFi Exchange

The Cardano project is launching a strategy to create and develop its own products in the decentralized finance and NFT market. The launch of the first DeFi exchange SundaeSwap is scheduled for January 20. The platform will have access to digital assets trading, as well as an innovative function for generating income through farming. With income farming, investors make a profit in tokens by investing in a DeFi project. A similar feature is common on decentralized sites and will be implemented in the Cardano ecosystem.

Given the sharp increase in the value of the coin in anticipation of the launch of the DeFi exchange, on January 20, one should not expect an impulse growth of the altcoin, since this news will already be included in the price of the asset.

Scalability and Smart Contracts on the ADA Network

The developers of the project also announced a number of improvements that will be implemented in the near future. Thanks to the implementation and optimization of smart contract technology, it became possible to scale the Cardano network. In the near future, the size of the block and the time of its distribution will be expanded, as well as the nodes will be modernized and the ability to record part of the data on the state of the blockchain will be added. All these innovations will also be implemented due to a significant increase in the audience.

Is Cardano an "Ethereum killer"?

All these factors make the ADA project one of the most promising in 2022. And if there is a project on the market that can claim the title of "Ethereum killer", then this is Cardano. As of 10:00 UTC, the coin is in the local support zone around $1.5. The coin is on the verge of breaking through the downward trend line, which starts on September 6th.

Current positions are a good place to enter the asset, as a large number of updates are planned for the next few months, which will become catalysts for price growth. In addition, the altcoin season index is in the 82 region, which is a harbinger of digital coin growth. The ADA project has chosen the perfect time to increase investment attractiveness by improving the network and become the main asset of the upcoming alt season.

ADA/USD technical picture

Technically, Cardano also looks strong. The coin has broken through the downward trend line and the 0.236 Fibo level. Technical indicators signal high activity of buyers. The MACD enters the green zone after the formation of a bullish crossover, while the stochastic and the RSI are approaching the overbought zone.

The direction of the movement of the stochastic oscillator may indicate a short-term pullback in the near future. In this case, the $1.5–$1.53 area will become a local support zone for the coin. If this milestone is held, the coin will move to the next target at $1.78, where the fibo level of 0.382 passes.

After a long lull and a drop in on-chain activity, Cardano is making a comeback in a V-shaped reversal and is poised to become one of the most profitable altcoins of the coming year.