Amaryllis, a prominent figure in the community, suggests that Cardano’s next phase of growth will depend more on execution than hype.
Recent developments, including the upcoming launch of Midnight, have reignited optimism within the Cardano community. Amaryllis argues that successful delivery will ultimately determine the long-term trajectory of the network.
Important points
- Amaryllis, a representative of the Cardano community, believes that execution, not hype, will define the next phase of growth for the network.
- Cardano’s Total Value Locked (TVL) decreased from over $700 million to $124 million.
- Recent network upgrades triggered short-term activity, but failed to maintain long-term momentum.
- Optimism has resurfaced around the potential for Tier-1 stablecoin integration and the upcoming launch of Midnight.
Cardano DeFi activity cannot sustain long-term acceleration
According to DeFiLlama data, Cardano recorded the strongest DeFi expansion from late 2024 to early 2025. During this period, the network’s total value locked (TVL) exceeded $700 million, and on-chain activity and transaction volume soared.
Amaryllis attributes this growth to the introduction of governance mechanisms and growing momentum around the tokenization of real world assets (RWA). However, by mid-to-late 2025, the network’s DeFi activity declined. TVL has since declined to $124 million.
While network upgrades continued to cause short-term spikes in activity, Amaryllis highlighted that the network’s DeFi activity has struggled to maintain long-term acceleration.
New optimism amid Hoskinson’s latest strategic push
Meanwhile, IOG founder Charles Hoskinson’s latest strategic push for DeFi aligns closely with Cardano’s 2026 roadmap. This blueprint prioritizes privacy through Midnight, stablecoin expansion, institutional-level partnerships, and scaling across the DeFi and RWA sectors.
For context, Cardano’s 2026 roadmap outlines plans to introduce a Tier 1 stablecoin this year to strengthen the DeFi ecosystem. The community remains divided over potential candidates, with some supporting USDT due to its relative ease of integration. Amid this discussion, Hoskinson revealed that Circle’s privacy stablecoin, USDCx, will be launched on Cardano later this month.
Additionally, Hoskinson recently confirmed that Midnight will be launched as a partner chain on Cardano’s mainnet next month. Future releases of Midnight will integrate the network’s privacy features with Cardano’s smart contract infrastructure.
He also said that existing partners such as Google and Telegram will help operate the network, with more partnerships expected over time.
While traders have responded positively in the short term, boosting sentiment, analysts stressed that Cardano’s long-term success will depend on implementing these proposals and building sticky liquidity to maintain user interest.
