Solana (SOL) tumbled to $210 on Sunday, marking a 30% drop from its yearly high. The market cap now sits at $103 billion, reflecting the broader crypto market downturn.

Solana Price Plunges as Crypto Market Sells Off
The crypto sell-off has affected major assets, pushing Bitcoin (BTC) briefly below $100,000 and dragging the total crypto market cap down 4% to $3.4 trillion.
Despite this, Solana had its strongest month on record. According to DeFi Llama, protocols in the Solana ecosystem processed over $258 billion in January, pushing total network volume to $969 billion. At this rate, Solana could cross the $1 trillion mark in February.

The biggest Solana DEX platforms driving this growth were:
- Orca
- Meteora
- Lifinity
- Raydium, which alone handled over $120 billion in 30 days.
Meme Coins Fuel Solana’s Growth
The recent surge in meme coin launches played a major role in boosting Solana’s network activity. Some of the biggest meme coin launches in January included:
- Official Trump (TRUMP) – Peaked at a $15 billion market cap, now down 70%.
- Melania
- Vine
Additionally, over 78,000 new Solana tokens are created daily, further driving network activity.

Solana Faces a Momentum Shift
Despite strong DeFi performance, Solana’s momentum is slowing.

- Active Solana wallets have dropped from 6.5 million (Jan. 19) to 3.6 million.
- Solana meme coin market cap fell from $25 billion to $14 billion.
- SOL price dropped from its yearly high of $295.4 to $213, its lowest since Jan. 17.
Technically, Solana has fallen below its 50-day moving average and key support at $223. The next critical level to watch is $170, which aligns with a double-top pattern neckline.
Will a Solana ETF Bring a Rebound?
There is growing optimism about a Solana ETF, as Cboe BZX recently refiled ETF applications for multiple asset managers, including:

- Bitwise
- VanEck
- 21Shares
- Canary Capital
This marks Cboe’s second attempt, with the SEC now reviewing applications under what analysts consider a more crypto-friendly administration.
- Polymarket bettors give Solana a 57% chance of ETF approval by July 31.
- Bloomberg analysts, however, believe Litecoin may be next for an ETF launch.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs have already attracted billions, signaling strong demand for crypto investment products. The key question remains: Will the SEC approve more altcoin ETFs?