Charles Hoskinson (찰스 호스킨슨), the founder of Cardano (ADA), said current sentiment in the cryptocurrency market is at its worst level in the past 15 years.

On March 10, blockchain outlet The Crypto Basic reported that Hoskinson said on a recent YouTube podcast that although he has been in the cryptocurrency industry for a long time, he has never seen a period when fear, doubt and uncertainty spread as much as they do now. He said market sentiment deteriorated sharply in recent months as the market went into a downtrend and internal conflicts added to the strain.

Hoskinson said hope for digital assets is fading and sentiment toward cryptocurrencies is generally turning negative. Bitcoin (BTC) plunged from about $126,200 in October last year to $60,000 in February this year, then partly recovered to about $71,000 now. Altcoins took a bigger hit, with more than 38% near record lows. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index, which indicates market fear, also fell to 5 last month, marking an extreme fear state.

Hoskinson cited a large-scale crash on Oct. 10 last year as a key turning point behind the deterioration in market sentiment. About $19.0 billion in market capitalisation disappeared in a single day, making it one of the industry’s biggest liquidation events. On the surface, it appeared to have been influenced by U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 100% tariff increase on imports from China, but some industry figures have suggested a combination of factors may have been at work, including competition among exchanges and stablecoin marketing.

Hoskinson said the cryptocurrency industry can overcome this downturn. "The way out of this situation is to provide better technology and experiences and create reasons for people to have positive feelings again," he said.

He said the Cardano ecosystem could demonstrate the strengths of a decentralised system if it strengthens governance capabilities through cooperation and improves practical utility and user experience. Hoskinson added that if such changes take place, Cardano could serve as a 'pioneer' of new cryptocurrency innovation.