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Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson identifies institutions as the real cause of the recent crypto market crash.
Throughout this month, the prices of major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Cardano, have been in steep decline. Cardano, for instance, opened November at $0.6092 but tumbled to a multi-month low of $0.3911 last week, leaving many investors frustrated. Likewise, Bitcoin, which reached $126,000 a month ago, dropped to $80,600 last week.
Institutions’ Pump-and-Dump Scheme Crashed Crypto Prices
Speaking during a November 24 livestream, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson delivered a blunt take on the recent crypto market slump. He argued that large institutions were the fundamental drivers of the downturn, accusing them of pumping and then dumping their digital asset treasuries (DATs).
He claimed that major players, including firms like Citadel, “got what they wanted” by driving prices up, then shorting the market as it fell, profiting on both ends of the trade. According to him, these institutions pulled “tens of billions of dollars” out of the market through cycles of aggressive speculation.
As a result, market makers were squeezed, retail investors suffered losses, and the market has been struggling ever since. He suggested that the combination of dominance by a few greedy institutions and widespread leverage left the market vulnerable when the bubble finally burst.
“The reason why the price is low, it’s because institutions got what they wanted. They pumped & dumped the dats…”
“Pumped it up, shorted it down, made both sides of the trade…” -Charles Hoskinson
Concerning Cardano ADA & Crypto in general… pic.twitter.com/dRHGYm9xTJ
— 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙓 ™ (@MetaMan) November 24, 2025
Retail Participants Didn’t Learn from 2021 Bull Run
Hoskinson argued that such behavior has become standard in the crypto market, where institutions extract “greedy money” while retail investors bear heavy losses. He emphasized that many have not learned the lessons of the 2021 bull run.
Notably, he described the 2021 bull run as a period marked by “irrational exuberance,” when highly speculative NFTs fetched millions of dollars, and valuations across the sector became detached from reality.
This led to high-profile collapses such as FTX and LUNA, severely damaging public trust, wiping out everyday investors, and further eroding confidence in the ecosystem.
Hoskinson Anticipates Major Rebound
Meanwhile, the market is gradually showing signs of recovery. Cardano has climbed back above the $0.40 level, currently trading at $0.4206. Bitcoin has also rebounded, rising to $87,755, representing an 8.79% increase from its recent low of $80,659.
Although conditions remain uncertain, Hoskinson believes stability will return once the U.S. enacts the Clarity Act next year. He argues that the landmark legislation could boost investor confidence and accelerate crypto adoption, even suggesting that Bitcoin could reach $250,000 by the end of 2026.