Solana’s Recent Surge Driven by Increased Activity and ETF Hopes

Solana’s Surge: Factors Behind Recent Outperformance

Increased transactional activity and heightened expectations surrounding potential exchange-traded fund (ETF) products have significantly contributed to Solana’s recent performance, as noted by several market analysts who shared insights with CoinDesk. Over the past week, Solana’s SOL tokens have experienced a remarkable surge of over 18%, surpassing the performances of larger cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). As of early Monday, SOL was trading above $180, achieving a new three-month high.

Market observers attribute this upward trend to the growing trading activity on Solana-based applications in recent weeks, which has bolstered the platform’s fundamentals. Pat Doyle, a blockchain researcher at Amberdata, remarked, “The Solana ecosystem is demonstrating robust growth, evidenced by increased decentralized exchange (DEX) activity, a rise in daily active users, and accumulating fees for the network.” This combination of strong fundamentals along with a positive market sentiment is propelling SOL’s price forward.

According to data from DefiLlama, the total value locked (TVL) of tokens on the Solana network has jumped over 25% within a month, now exceeding $5.28 billion—levels not seen since April 2022. The network has consistently generated at least $1.5 million in daily revenue since June and has recorded over $2 billion in on-chain trading volumes daily over the past week.

One of Solana’s key attractions for traders lies in its rapid settlement speeds and minimal transaction fees, which have fueled meme coin trading frenzies multiple times throughout the past year. In contrast, Ethereum, the largest blockchain by TVL at $60 billion, reported lower trading volumes of $1.7 billion but incurred higher fees, totaling $3 million, due to its costlier nature for users.

Moreover, easing regulatory policies are enhancing SOL’s appeal among professional investors, according to Rennick Palley, founding partner at the crypto venture fund Stratos. He stated, “The current surge can be attributed to improving overall market sentiment and the increasing likelihood that SOL and its ecosystem tokens will not be classified as securities under the Trump administration.” This comment references former President Donald Trump’s recently demonstrated crypto-friendly stance during his pre-election speeches.

Palley further added, “The anticipated launch of Ethereum ETFs is also contributing to this momentum—SOL seems poised to be the next token to receive an ETF, which, considering its relatively smaller market size and strong price performance, would be exceptionally bullish.” In early July, the Cboe submitted 19b-4 filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to seek approval for potential spot Solana ETFs from VanEck and 21Shares, which were initially filed in late June.

As of Monday morning in Europe, SOL is trading at nearly $180, reflecting a 3.5% increase over the past 24 hours, significantly outpacing the broader CoinDesk 20 index, which has risen by only 1.3%.