The clouds have been gathering over Solana in recent weeks, and things have gotten a little darker over the last seven days.
TL;DR
- Solana down 17% to $169, TVL drops to $8.3 billion
- BNB flips Solana in daily revenue
- Polygon overtakes Solana to lead the NFT weekly user race
- Libra meme coin scandal scams over $100 million
- Solana shorts pile up
Introduction
The clouds have been gathering over Solana in recent weeks, and things have gotten a little darker over the last seven days. SOL is down 17% this week, falling to $169, its lowest since November 2024.
Solana took a lot of flak this week with the latest meme coin scandal bleeding investors dry. This time it was $LIBRA, involving Argentina's President Javier Milei, where insider traders rug-pulled over $100 million and wiped off over $4 billion in LIBRA's market cap. After the $TRUMP and $MELANIA (and, ahem, $CAR and $JAILSTOOL) dumps, the meme coin casino is starting to look more like a cashout counter for opportunistic celebrities.
Protocols like Meteora and Jupiter have been called out for profiting from the carnage at the expense of traders.
The meme coin scandal has also increased Solana shorts. And the 11.2 million SOL tokens (worth $2 billion) to be unlocked on March 1 do not provide any relief.
The damage does not end there. The network's daily fee revenue has tanked, leading BNB to capitalize on the setback and flip Solana and other chains. Other chains like Avalanche have started pouncing, steadily pumping their own meme coins.
For a bit of positive news, Jupiter exchange is set to buy back JUP tokens worth approximately $100 million annually.
Here is more on the chaotic week in Solanaland.
Solana Numbers the Last 7 Days
Source: CoinMarketCap
- Price: $169, down 17%
- Market cap: $82.75 billion
- DeFi TVL: $8.32 billion
- Daily active addresses: >4.6 million
- 24H trading volume: $5.59 billion
Solana lost 17% this week. The once-unstoppable force of Pump.fun-driven meme coin output, which fueled its network adoption and growth, has now become its Achilles' heel as it overshadows all the gains in DeFi and other sectors.
Its total value locked (TVL) dropped to $8.32 billion, while its number of active addresses plummeted by over 20% to 4.6 million.
Source: Artemis
DEX trading volume could not escape the chaotic week as it plunged 20% to just under $25 billion.
Source: DeFiLlama
Raydium's trading volume fell 47% while Sanctum gained 99%. Other DEX platforms experienced mixed fortunes.
Source: DeFiLlama
How Did Solana Stack Up Against Its Competitors?
Bitcoin and Ethereum are in the red this week but they aren’t down as bad as Solana's fall. XRP gained 4% while BNB, fueled by meme coin optimism, is 2% in the green. Solana has dropped out of the Top 5 as a result.
Source: CoinMarketCap
A lot can change in a week. Last week, Solana was raking in over $12 million in daily app revenue. Today, it's struggling with less than $1 million.
Source: DeFiLlama
Solana Ecosystem the Last Week
The Solana ecosystem market cap experienced a 3% decline while the trading volume enjoyed a 7% gain.
Source: CoinMarketCap
Solana’s ecosystem tokens are in rough shape. Most are in the red, though Lido DAO (LDO) stands out with a solid 14% gain.
Source: CoinMarketCap
Top Gainers:
- Lido DAO (LDO): +14.43%
- Trust Wallet Token (TWT): +10%
- Grass (GRASS): +8%
- FTX Token (FTT): +3%
Top Losers:
- Raydium (RAY): -21%
- Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL): - 19.47%
- Helium (HNT): -15.21%
- Jupiter (JUP): -14.927%
- Compound (COMP): -9%
Solana DeFi
Solana TVL fell 10% this week, allowing its closest rivals (Bitcoin, BNB Chain, and Tron) to gain ground.
Source: DeFiLlama
There were some changes in the DeFi pecking order. BNB Chain BSC flipped Tron in fourth place. Though Solana remains in second place, its position is under threat from Bitcoin.
Source: DeFiLlama
Solana Meme Coins
- The Libra meme coin fiasco has sent Solana's meme coins tumbling, with most now in the red. Pump.fun founder Alon is calling for "meme coin guardrails" to prevent further chaos. The irony!
Source: CoinMarketCap
Top Gainers:
- Daddy Tate (DADDY):+9.53%
Top Losers:
- Fwog (FWOG): -49.15%
- Gigachad (GIGA): -29.64%
- RETARDIO (RETARDIO): -29.35%
- Goatseus Maximus (GOAT): - 21.77%
- SLERF (SLERF): -19.1%
Solana DePIN
Source: DePIN Scan
- Solana's DePIN tokens took a hit, except for Grass (GRASS), which defied the trend with an 8.4% gain.
NFTs
- Solana’s struggles are spilling into the NFT space, with Polygon now leading in weekly users.
- Polygon claims 29.8%, while Solana trails at 24.1%.
- Ethereum is closing in at 22%.
Source: NFT Pulse
Top 5 Solana News Stories
Libra Meme Coin Crashes After $107M Insider Scam
Libra (LIBRA), backed by Argentina’s president Javier Milei, plummeted 94% after insiders cashed out $107 million just hours post-launch, wiping out over $4 billion from its market cap.
Libra Token Launch an ‘Open Secret,’ Sparks Political Storm
Argentine President Javier Milei's endorsement of the Libra token has backfired, with impeachment calls mounting after a $100 million rug pull.
Even more explosive: members of Jupiter Exchange knew about the token’s launch weeks in advance, calling it an "open secret" in meme coin circles.
Jupiter To Buy Back $100M in JUP Annually, Boosting Demand
Jupiter Exchange plans to buy back over $100 million in JUP tokens annually. Half of the protocol fees will fuel these buybacks, locking the tokens for three years.
BNB Chain Surpasses Solana in Daily Fees
BNB Chain has surpassed Solana in daily fees for the first time since October 2024, outpacing both Ethereum and Solana.
Solana Shorts Rise as Meme Coin Scandals Weigh on Price
Amid mounting meme coin scandals, bearish sentiment is growing around Solana. The long-to-short ratio on SOL futures has dropped sharply, signaling a shift towards pessimism.
What You Can Do Now
- Be careful of scam or pump-and-dump meme coins.
- Don’t marry your meme coin bags as the majority eventually tank spectacularly.
- Follow Jupiter as it intends to buy back JUP tokens.
- Keep your ear to the ground as Solana loses the daily revenue battle to BNB for now.
- Protect your Solana holdings as bearish sentiment takes over the altcoin.
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