Cardano Leads Gains as Bitcoin, Ether Tick Higher to Start 2026

Cardano's ADA jumped about 7% as traders returned from the holiday break, leading gains among large-cap tokens while bitcoin and ether posted modest rises in Asian morning hours Friday. Bitcoin traded near $88,700, up roughly 1%, and ether hovered around $3,010 after adding about 1%, continuing a steady recovery from late-December lows.

Solana, XRP and BNB also traded higher. The stronger moves in a handful of altcoins appeared to reflect selective positioning rather than a broad altcoin surge. Analysts at crypto payments firm B2BINPAY said flows still favor liquid majors as investors begin the year in capital preservation mode.

"Investors aren’t rotating wholesale out of bitcoin and ethereum into the altcoin market," they wrote, noting the Altseason Index near 16 signals bitcoin dominance and a lack of market-wide participation. They added that inflows into large caps look like targeted exposure rather than an early altseason bid.

The modest crypto rebound came as global markets turned risk-on: Asian equities rose 0.8%, led by tech shares, and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed about 0.6% as traders leaned into AI and chip names. Precious metals also advanced, with spot gold moving toward $4,350 an ounce and silver gaining more than 1% as traders positioned for potential U.S.

Key Topics

Crypto, United States, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, Altcoins, Markets