Founder of Cardano Charles Hoskinson has come forward to address swirling rumors that it has abandoned its ADA holdings, sparking concerns about its potential role in the altcoin’s dramatic 80% price drop. Amid speculation and discussion on social media, Hoskinson strongly denies the claims, insisting he did not personally contribute to the decline by divesting himself of his assets.
Cardano founder denies ADA selling allegations
Despite the holiday season, Hoskinson has been bombarded with accusations of contributing to ADA’s 80% price drop over the past four years. Initially, the Cardano founder visited X on December 25 to share an optimistic message for 2026, encouraging bearers and community members not to lose hope.
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He emphasized that despite the challenges of recent years, there is much to look forward to in 2026. He extended holiday greetings and expressed appreciation to the Cardano community, including members like @injective_pie, who spoke on ADA Price Performance and the progress of its blockchain over the years.
While many responded positively to Hoskinson’s holiday messages and wishes, @injective_pie confronted him directly, accusing dumping him ADA. The community member asked the Cardano founder about the possibility of selling his ADA at $3 and not buying it back at lower levels around $0.3, suggesting that such actions could undermine confidence in the crypto project.
Hoskinson quickly dismissed the claims, insisting that he had not abandoned his ADA and that the false narratives did not change reality. The member’s response highlighted the tension between the Cardano founder and some skeptical segments of the community. It also highlighted continued dissatisfaction with the current ADA price.
Notably, frustration among ADA investors has increased over the years as the cryptocurrency has failed to regain its all-time highs. From its peak in 2021Cardano price has been steadily declining, recently falling to $0.35 after crashing more than 3% this week. Since the start of the year, the altcoin has fallen more than 50%, highlighting the prolonged challenges the network faces despite its strong community support.
Cardano’s underperformance contrasts with other major cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which reached new ATHs this year. Even with daily trading volume up over 96%, ADA has has not yet shown significant bullish momentumfalling even further as the broader market faces continued downward pressure.
ADA Price Weakens Further as Open Interest Declines
Amid slow price development, data of Coinglass shows that ADA Futures Open Interest (OI) rose from $1.72 billion in October 2025 to $651 million as of December 26. This massive change represents a sharp drop of over 62% in less than three months.
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With the deterioration of key fundamentals and market sentiment weakensadditional pressure was placed on the price of ADA. On-chain data too watch that Cardano’s Fear and Greed Index stands at 37, firmly placed in the fear zone, as the price continues to fall.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview.com
