Solana’s slow bleed continues, with $SOL dropping 2.82% this week (Dec. 12-18).
Solana Numbers the Last 7 Days
Solana’s slow bleed continues, with $SOL dropping 2.82% this week (Dec. 12-18). Since its all-time high (ATH) on Nov. 23, Solana has shed 18%, leaving investors wondering if the decline will persist or if a Santa Claus rally could offer relief.
However, TradFi doesn't seem to care, as institutional adoption continues unabated. Bitwise, a crypto index fund manager, launched a Solana staking ETP in Europe while Van Eck, a TradiFi giant that has already filed for a Solana ETF in the U.S., invested $2.5 million in the Solana DePIN project DAWN.
Solana may be struggling in price but it’s winning behind the scenes. This week’s crazy Pudgy Penguins $PENGU launch and airdrop, as well as new developer data, back up the fact that Solana remains the place to be. Let’s check out what went right (and wrong) this week.
- Price: $215.90, down 2.82%
- Market cap: $103.44 billion
- DeFi TVL: $9.178 billion
- Daily active addresses: >6.5 million
- 24H trading volume: $7.01 billion
It was another week where Solana’s pendulum swung in favor of the bears despite a promising start. Solana reached a weekly high of $233 on the back of Bitcoin’s latest ATH run, but the downward pressure dragged $SOL below $214 before its slight recovery.
But Solana also gained more ground in key metrics. The network saw a 20% surge in daily active addresses, surpassing 6.5 million, signaling healthy user engagement. It was the same story with the total value locked (TVL), which bounced back to above $9 billion, recovering from last week's slump.
However, Solana's DEX volume took a sharp hit, shedding nearly 12% to a total volume of $28.2 billion.
This dip is reflected in the trading slump of some of Solana's top DEXs.
Lifinity, last week's shining star, crashed by nearly 40%. Other notable losers include Orca, Phoenix, Sanctum and Manifest Trade. On the bright side, Raydium, the flagship DEX, posted minor gains.
This sudden shift in DEX volume serves as a reminder of how quickly things can change in the Solana ecosystem—and the broader crypto market as a whole. Typical crypto rotation stuff.
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How Did Solana Stack Up Against Its Competitors?
It’s still a Bitcoin world, with the leading crypto asset surging more than 6% in the past week. Solana continues to trend lower while Bitcoin remains above $100K.
Ethereum is also on the move, gaining 4% this week as it sets its sights on the $4K mark. But the big news is that, for the first time in eight years, Solana's ecosystem has onboarded more new developers than Ethereum's. What a win for Solana!
And as for XRP? Well, it’s up again, gaining 7.7%. SMH.
Altcoins are losing strength against Bitcoin, with the CMC Altcoin Season Index dropping to 59 from last week's 66.
Patience, Padawan.
In the DeFi space, Solana has solidified its spot as the second-largest decentralized finance network, edging up its TVL to $9.199 billion and continuing to prove that it’s much more than just a meme coin mecca. While Solana holds strong, Ethereum calls the shots in the sector. Tron holds down the third spot.
Solana Ecosystem the Last Week
It was a bloodbath for Solana's ecosystem tokens, with most sinking deep into the red, though a few outliers notched massive gains, fueled by some explosive catalysts.
- Chainlink (LINK) surged an impressive 22%, reclaiming the $30 mark and reaching heights not seen since 2021. This comes after World Liberty Financial, a company linked to President-elect Donald Trump, splashed millions of dollars on various altcoins including LINK. The Trump trade continues.
- Meanwhile, Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) showed that they can indeed fly, skyrocketing 642% following its launch this week.
- Ai16z’s (AI16Z) 21.54% gains put the AI agents ecosystem in the spotlight as the emerging trend gains momentum.
- But for the rest, the market paints a dire picture, with most tokens bleeding out previous gains.
Top Gainers:
- Pudgy Penguins (PENGU): +642.4%
- ChainLink (LINK): +22.27%
- ai16z (AI16Z): +21.38%
- CARV (CARV): +12.08%
- PYTH Network (PYTH) +3.39%
Top Losers:
- Orca (ORCA): -28.33%
- Hivemapper (HONEY): -16.11%
- Raydium (RAY): -12.18%
- Arweave (AR): -11.09%
- Jupiter (JUP): -9.74%
Solana DeFi
Solana's total value locked (TVL) surged 2.02% this week, reclaiming the $9 billion mark, and strongly holding onto its second place after wrestling it back from Tron.
Tron was almost muted, with its TVL failing to rise above $8 billion. This ensures that Tron remains in third place, with Ethereum accounting for 56% of the DeFi market.
Solana Meme Coins
It was a rough week for Solana meme coins, with the U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issuing a warning to its citizens about the Retardio coin, adding a layer of regulatory concern to the already chaotic scene.
On the flip side, Fartcoin (FARTCOIN), birthed from the AI agent "Terminal of Truths," nearly doubled in value as traders dove head-first into full degenerate mode.
The majority of leading Solana meme coins were not insulated from this week's bloodbath, forcing them to slide substantially.
Top Gainers:
- Fartcoin (FARTCOIN): +97.5%
- Hehe (HEHE): +8.62%
Top Losers:
- Michi (MICHI): -32.89%
- Mumu the Bull (MUMU): - 30.22%
- Popcat (POPCAT): -19.1%
- Gigachad (GIGA): -16.26%
- Dogwifhat (WIF): -15.44%
Solana DePIN
- It was mostly a bloodbath for Solana’s DePIN tokens, with only a few managing to crawl into the green. Grass (GRASS), io.net, and Nosana (NOS) saw modest gains, ranging from 1% to 4.2%, holding their ground in a tough market.
- Hivemapper, however, took the biggest hit, suffering a steep 16% loss, further underlining the volatility in the DePIN space.
- On a brighter note, Van Eck invested in DAWN, a Solana DePIN project.
NFTs
- Solana is the dominant blockchain network, accounting for over 35% of the daily and weekly user charts.
- Solana is miles ahead of its closest competitor Ethereum.
Top 5 Solana News Stories
Bitwise Launches Solana Staking ETP in Europe
Bitwise has launched a Solana staking exchange-traded product (ETP) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange's Xetra, with the ticker BSOL, as it awaits approval for its Solana ETF in the U.S.
Solana Overtakes Ethereum in New Developer Growth
Solana onboarded 7,625 new developers in 2024, surpassing Ethereum for the first time since 2016, though Ethereum still leads in total developer activity globally.
VanEck Invests $2.5 Million in DePIN Project DAWN
VanEck is investing $2.5 million in DAWN, a Solana-based DePIN project focused on building a decentralized internet service, marking the first joint investment from multiple VanEck funds.
Drake's X Account Hacked To Promote Fake Solana Meme Coin
Drake's X account was hacked to promote a fraudulent Solana-based meme coin, Anita, linked to his cartoon alter ego, Anita Max Wynn.
The posts, which falsely claimed a partnership with Drake's gambling platform, Stake, generated $5 million in trading volume before being recognized as a scam and removed.
Trader Loses $10,000 on Failed PENGU Airdrop Swap
An unlucky trader swapped over 45 wrapped Solana tokens for PENGU tokens just before the airdrop, only to receive 78 PENGU worth less than $3 due to a timing issue with decentralized exchange aggregator Jupiter. The $10,000 investment turned into less than $5 in seconds.
What You Can Do Now
- Keep an eye on Bitwise’s Solana staking ETP (BSOL) on Xetra—it could offer valuable insights into where Solana is headed next.
- Watch closely as Solana surpasses Ethereum in new developer growth for the first time since Ethereum took the lead in 2016.
- Keep an eye on VanEck's $2.5 million investment in DAWN—smart money is backing the future of decentralized internet, and it could signal key opportunities in crypto.
- Be vigilant and watch for tell-tale signs of crypto scams—like the fraudulent Anita meme coin promoted on Drake's hacked X account—to avoid losing money.
- Avoid FOMO—always weigh the risks and timing of your trades to prevent costly mistakes.
