Coinbase’s Month-Old ‘Base’Surpasses Cardano TVL, A Closer Look

On Sep 6, 2023

Total Value Locked (TVL), one of the metrics used to know the robustness of a blockchain in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, has recently been put at the forefront to compare Coinbase’s newcomer second-layer blockchain Base, and Cardano, a veteran in the crypto scene.

For perspective, Cardano has been part of the blockchain ecosystem since 2017. It has had years to establish its foothold, earn its reputation, and attract investments. While Base, on the other hand, which is barely a month old, is now reportedly surpassing Cardano’s TVL by a notable margin.

Base Vs. Cardano: By The Numbers

On September 4th, Parul Gujral, a decentralized finance (DeFi) enthusiast, shed light on the matter. Gujral noticed that Base’s TVL is already three times that of Cardano’s. Gujral presented a screenshot supporting this claim, highlighting the TVL of both platforms.

Base is already three times bigger than Cardano, but the difference is Cardano has been here since 2017, while Base is only 1 month old.$ADA is the flop nobody talks about. pic.twitter.com/8m3A0ITM1v
— Parul Gujral 🦇🔊 (@whoisparul) September 4, 2023

While Cardano locked in $163 million, Base towered with a TVL of $422.3 million. This difference isn’t just a passing observation as it poses profound questions about Cardano’s standing in the DeFi space, with Gujral referring to ADA as the “flop nobody talks about.”

Data further complements this narrative. Recent statistics from Token Terminal, a trusted platform aggregating blockchain financial data, reveal that Cardano’s market cap has taken a hit of more than 10% in the last month.

It translates to a nearly $5 billion decline, leaving the blockchain’s fully diluted market cap at $11.5 billion, contrasting with its circulating market cap of $9 billion.

Cardano’s fully diluted and circulating daily market cap in the past month. | Source: Token Terminal

A fully diluted market cap represents the total market value of all available tokens circulated. In contrast, a circulating market cap only accounts for the tokens currently in the market.

Base’s Short-lived Glitch And Prompt Recovery

It’s worth noting that Base’s journey, though commendable, hasn’t been devoid of challenges. Merely a month after its launch, Base’s blockchain experienced a glitch for the first time after its public unveiling on August 9th.

According to details on the Base status site, block production halted unexpectedly for about 45 minutes on September 5th.

However, the Base team was quick to respond. They diagnosed the issue at 9:36 PM UTC and took swift action to rectify it. The glitch was traced back to a delay in block production, attributed to part of their internal infrastructure needing a refresh.

After implementing the necessary fix, normalcy was restored, with block production resuming its pace.

Earlier today we had a delay in block production due in part to our internal infrastructure requiring a refresh.
The issue has been identified and remediated. No funds are at risk.
To stay updated, check https://t.co/ipa94DPBLq
— Base 🛡️ (@BuildOnBase) September 5, 2023

Alongside Cardano’s plunge in market cap, the blockchain’s native token ADA has also recorded a loss of 3.2% over the past week, with a current trading price of $0.25 at the time of writing.