Solana (SOL) continues to astonish the cryptocurrency market, surging by an impressive 11% on Friday despite concerns of a potential fire sale by the troubled crypto exchange FTX.
This gain further solidifies Solana’s position as one of the strongest-performing digital assets this year as its year-to-date gain jumped to 170%.
In contrast, crypto giants Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) only advanced by 10% and 3%, respectively, over the same time frame while the broader crypto market advanced by just 8% advance.
“This is some of the strongest buying activity we’ve seen since July,” observed David Shuttleworth, research partner at Anagram and former managing director at Binance Labs.
SOL’s resurgence comes after doubts clouded its future at the end of 2022 following the dramatic fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a prominent supporter and investor in the Solana ecosystem.
Moreover, concerns arose when a U.S. bankruptcy court granted permission for the liquidation of FTX-Alameda estate’s massive crypto holdings, which included a substantial $1.16 billion Solana stash as of late August. Yet, fears of a market flood of SOL tokens proved to be less severe than expected.
Lucas Outumuro, head of research at IntoTheBlock, pointed to SOL’s technical breakout against Ethereum as a potential contributor to the recent rally.
Investors have also flocked to Solana-focused funds, with $24 million in net inflows reported by asset manager CoinShares last week. It marks the largest weekly influx since March 2022, indicating SOL’s growing appeal as the preferred altcoin.
The Solana blockchain’s increasing network activity, coupled with technical upgrades, including reduced validator hardware requirements and optional zero-knowledge-compatible encryption for transactions, has further enhanced its reputation as a dynamic and forward-thinking blockchain ecosystem.
Solana’s resilience and innovation have set it on a remarkable trajectory, leaving crypto enthusiasts eagerly watching its continued ascent in the market.