Cardano Improves Cross-Chain Features for $100M+ DeFi TVL

Prepare yourself, because Cardano is about to enter the next level of cross-chain capabilities! The decentralized finance revolution has just gotten a boost thanks to a network functionality upgrade announced by developers on Thursday.

According to tweets from IOG, the maintainer of Cardano's code, the proposal, which was submitted on Wednesday, will be launched on February 11th at precisely 00:00 UTC. However, before it is released on mainnet, it will be put through its paces in a virtual testing environment, giving the team a taste of its real-world potential.

The upgrade is set to bring a whole new level of cryptography and cross-chain dapp development to the Plutus smart contract platform on Cardano.

This upgrade will make it possible for developers to build applications that connect Cardano with other blockchains, giving users access to a wider range of financial services. And with dapps, there's no need for middlemen. Instead, smart contracts power these financial services, offering lending, borrowing and more, all powered by tokens.

It's no secret that the world of Cardano DeFi has been on fire lately, with total locked value (TVL) reaching $100 million last week. Wingriders and Minswap account for more than half of this value, according to DeFiLlama data.

The launch of the overcollateralized djed stablecoin earlier this month has only added fuel to the fire. With a backing of other tokens and requiring 400-800% in collateral value, djed is designed to stay stable even in volatile market conditions. Plus, holders of Cardano's ADA cryptocurrency can earn rewards by staking their coins to mint djed stablecoins, providing liquidity to the ecosystem.

All these enhancements could have a positive impact not only on Cardano's native token ADA, but also on the tokens of projects built on the Cardano platform. As of Thursday, ADA is trading at 39 cents with a market cap of $13 billion.

It's clear that the future is looking bright for Cardano and its DeFi ecosystem.