While other cryptocurrencies are bracing for an extended price dip, Cardano (ADA) enthusiasts are rubbing their hands in glee over the prospects of an iconic rally poised to send the native token to a new all-time high.
Cardano’s community are pinning their hopes on the Chang hard fork, a momentous event expected to introduce wholly decentralized governance to the network. The hard fork, originally scheduled for Q2 of 2024 is expected to have a swathe of positives for Cardano but speculators are mulling the prospects of a price spike.
Enthusiasts have since begun comparing the event to the Alonzo hardfork from 2021, which introduced smart contract functionality to Cardano. Dubbed as the most anticipated hard fork of the year, Alonzo had a profound effect on ADA’s price, sending the asset from lows of $0.2 to a staggering all-time high of $3.10.
By the end of the fork, ADA had recorded a 1,400% leap to outperform Bitcoin (BTC) as investors predicted a further climb to $5 before the end of 2021.
Analysts are already drawing similarities between the two hard forks with several pundits pointing to delays that affected both events. In 2021, the Alonzo hard fork suffered a series of delays in the build up to its launch while Chang has hit the first bump on the road, failing to meet its Q2 deadline.
While Alonzo introduced smart contracts, Chang is expected to usher in a new era of decentralization for the network and pundits are rippling with enthusiasm that the incoming hard fork will have the same price impact as Alonzo.
If this rings true, ADA could soar as high as $5.7 by the time Chang is priced in, 1,400% from current levels. The anticipated price will set a new all-time high for ADA, but skeptics argue that Bitcoin’s (BTC) oscillations could affect the final pricing for the native token.
Cardano’s outspoken founder Charles Hoskinson has since claimed that Chang was not originally scheduled for Q2, claiming that news outlets may have misquoted his earlier comments.
“I never said June. That’s a misquote. A fork ready node is ready and wating for 79 percent of the stake pool operators to test and update,” said Hoskinson. “As I said, in the video, this generally requires a month.”