Solana price falls 1.44% to $103.96 over the past 24 hours. This comes ahead of tomorrow’s Alpenglow launch on October 21.
Meanwhile, the broader crypto market declined 1.77% to $2.72 trillion. Cascading long liquidations and widespread selling weighed on digital assets. Bitcoin hovered near $81,400. Ethereum traded around $2,380. XRP traded below $1.30.
Solana price falls ahead of Alpenglow upgrade
Solana will activate Alpenglow on October 21. The upgrade targets transaction finality of about 150 milliseconds. Anza said faster slot production moved the expected activation ahead of earlier estimates.
The upgrade replaces TowerBFT. It changes how validators agree on blocks. However, transaction execution remains unchanged. Quicknode warned that transactions could briefly stop entering blocks. Some data streams might also disconnect temporarily.
Operators must install compatible validator software. They must also maintain enough funds in vote accounts. Specifically, the admission fee is 0.8 SOL per epoch. A lack of balance prevents participation as a validator.
RPC nodes might not learn of finality as quickly as validators. The 150-millisecond figure remains a performance target. Actual settlement speeds depend on network conditions.
Solana leads blockchain app revenue
Solana led blockchain application revenue across three timeframes. It recorded $4.87 million daily and $31.23 million weekly. Monthly revenue reached $163.52 million. That beat Hyperliquid’s $75.44 million and Ethereum’s $55.15 million.
Additionally, Blockworks data showed Solana generated $6.54 million in network revenue. That covered October 12 to October 18. Consequently, it extended its revenue lead to five consecutive weeks. BNB Chain followed with $3.23 million. Ethereum recorded $2.87 million.
Solana price prediction: recover toward $110 or fall to $90?
At press time, SOL traded at $104.01. It was down 0.38% on the current 4-hour candle. Recent candles clustered between $100 and $105. Therefore, the decline slowed without confirming a lasting recovery.
The RSI was 47.24. That value indicates weak momentum. It remains below the 50 midpoint.
The MACD line was -0.23, above its signal line of -0.41. The histogram was positive at 0.19. Therefore, bearish pressure is easing slightly.
The chart places $105 as the immediate upside target. Then $110 follows if buyers sustain a breakout. A recovery above $110 could bring $120 into view.
Failure to clear $105 could keep Solana trapped in its range. That would leave $100 vulnerable to another test. A decisive 4-hour close below $100 could expose $90. That is the next lower horizontal level.
What comes next for Solana
Alpenglow goes live on October 21. If the upgrade succeeds, finality could improve significantly. Meanwhile, revenue remains strong. However, price action remains weak. Therefore, traders should watch $100 and $105 closely. A break below $100 could accelerate selling. A close above $105 would improve the recovery outlook.