Cardano’s ADA traded fairly flat on Sunday, hovering around the $1 mark, extending its week-long consolidation. The price has been largely sideways since re-testing major support at $0.80 last month, despite impressive surges from other cryptocurrencies like SOL and BTC. Despite this quiet phase in price movement, significant activity is unfolding behind the scenes, potentially signaling a major surge ahead. On-chain data from crypto analytics platform CoinGlass reveals that Cardano’s open futures interest has surged to an all-time high of $1.42 billion across exchanges. Open interest is often seen as a bullish sign, with the high levels suggesting confidence in the asset’s future potential. Furthermore, Cardano’s Total Value Locked (TVL) in ADA has resumed its surge despite a slight recoiling after reaching a new all-time high of $701 million earlier this month. Beyond the on-chain data, Cardano’s fundamentals continue to strengthen, adding to the optimism around ADA’s price. Notably, the network is gearing up for its highly anticipated Plomin Hard Fork, set to occur between January 14 and January 29, 2025. This upgrade will mark a pivotal shift to decentralized governance under CIP-1694. On Saturday, both stake pool operators and the Intersect Constitutional Committee gave their approval for the hard fork, marking a significant milestone for Cardano. Looking ahead, Cardano’s 2025 roadmap looks promising. In a Saturday tweet , founder Charles Hoskinson outlined his strategic focus for the year. Key priorities include bringing Bitcoin DeFi to Cardano, targeting a market four times larger than Ethereum and Solana combined, advancing scalability with Leios, and expanding the ecosystem through more partnerships. Hoskinson also stressed the importance of stablecoins in growing Cardano’s financial ecosystem. Cardano’s growing momentum has also caught the eye of larger institutional players. Cardano’s recent addition to the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund (GDLC) further validates its long-term potential. Additionally, continued accumulation by whales has raised expectations that a spot Bitcoin ETF approval under the Trump administration could push ADA’s price even higher. Meanwhile, analysts have also expressed optimism on ADA’s future, with veteran analyst Peter Brandt stating on Jan. 16 , “Cardano $ADA has bottomed for a grand bull market ,” suggesting the recent retest of $0.80 support could be the catalyst for a major rally. Other analysts, such as Ali Martinez, have pointed to a potential surge in ADA’s price based on historical data. “After a 44% correction, ADA began its second leg up during the week of February 1, 2021. Now, ADA has already undergone a 43% correction, suggesting the next leg up could be just two to three weeks away. $6 next,” tweeted Martinez. Analyst “World of Chart” also predicted a bullish breakout of a pennant pattern, with a target of $2 in the near future. At press time, ADA was trading at $1.09, reflecting a 1.62% surge in the past 24 hours.