Foreign media believe that Cardano (ADA) falling out of the top ten crypto asset market capitalization is not just a change in ranking, but also reflects the market's increasing scrutiny of asset quality. In an overall risk-averse environment, funds have not flowed back to high-volatility narratives, but instead tend to flow to networks with higher on-chain activity and clearer applications.

XLM and HBAR rankings rise

The article mentions that Stellar's native token, XLM, recently entered the top ten by market capitalization, reaching a peak of approximately $10 billion. Hedera's HBAR also rose to 18th place, with a market capitalization of approximately $4.6 billion.

Foreign media believe that the simultaneous rise of these two asset classes is not accidental. Unlike themes driven by sentiment, the market is more willing to pay for sustained on-chain activity, visible adoption progress, and relatively clear economic value.

Changes in fund allocation during risk aversion phase

Historically, short-term funds during periods of risk aversion tend to flow into more speculative sectors, especially memecoins. The article states that this time is different. While Dogecoin remains one of the few memecoins to retain its position in the top 20, the overall market capitalization of the memecoin sector has shrunk by nearly 15% this year, significantly weakening its ability to attract liquidity.

This is seen by foreign media as a broader signal: the market is no longer chasing the narrative of high resilience, but is instead reassessing which networks can provide more stable usage demand and on-chain performance.

The meaning of ADA falling out of the top ten

According to CoinMarketCap data, ADA had fallen to 13th place at the time of writing, with a market capitalization of approximately $8 billion, one of its lowest levels in nearly three years. The article argues that this not only indicates weakening price momentum but also reflects a cooling of market expectations for its growth.

The article also cites analysts who compare ADA's current situation to Polkadot's (DOT) decline in rankings over the past few years. These analysts argue that if token inflation and resource investment fail to translate into clearer growth results, holder confidence could continue to weaken, thus dragging down the asset's position in the market.

Overall, foreign media outlets believe the crypto market is entering a more discerning phase. Narratives alone are no longer sufficient to support long-term capital allocation; consistently active on-chain data, actual adoption, and measurable economic value are becoming increasingly important.