Solana's SOL Strategies Inc. Approved for Nasdaq Listing, Price Drops 1.627%

Solana's latest price was $200.21, down 1.627% in the last 24 hours. SOL Strategies Inc., a Canadian firm focused on Solana, has received approval to list its common shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. The company will begin trading on September 9, 2025, under the ticker STKE. This marks the first time a Solana-focused public company has achieved a U.S. listing, providing investors with regulated exposure to Solana. The approval came after the company submitted a Form 40-F registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Until the Nasdaq listing, shares will continue to trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker HODL. The company has also consolidated its shares on a one-for-eight basis in July 2025, reducing outstanding shares from 176 million to about 22 million. This move meets Nasdaq’s bid price requirements and adjusts warrants, options, and convertible securities proportionately. By mid-2025, filings showed holdings of more than 420,000 SOL. In August, it reported 3.62 million SOL managed under delegation, including 402,623 SOL from its treasury. The company now serves 8,812 wallets staking through its validator operations. Institutional interest has expanded. In July, ARK Invest moved 3.6 million SOL to the firm’s infrastructure. Other firms, including Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital, are raising $1 billion for Solana reserves. DeFi Development Corp. has doubled holdings to over 2 million SOL. The company expects Nasdaq trading to enhance liquidity, accelerate validator growth, and strengthen its role as a leading institutional gateway for Solana.

Solana’s decentralized exchange (DEX) ecosystem has surpassed 750 million unique transaction addresses, showcasing the explosive growth and adoption of the network. However, a deeper look into the data reveals a striking trend: 96.6% of these addresses are used for less than one day. This means most wallet addresses on Solana DEXs are highly temporary — possibly generated for single-use interactions, testing, or bot activity. This pattern is not uncommon in high-frequency trading environments, where wallet cycling is used for strategy or anonymity. Such short lifespans might also be due to airdrop farming or speculative activity, where users create temporary wallets to qualify for token distributions. Despite the high turnover, the long-term base on Solana DEXs is notable. Over 1.8 million addresses have remained active for more than one year, with an average lifespan of 655 days. This group likely represents seasoned users, loyal traders, and developers who consistently interact with Solana DEXs. It also reflects the growing maturity and stickiness of the Solana DeFi ecosystem. These long-term users play a critical role in the health and development of the ecosystem, offering real engagement beyond just speculative use. The high number of single-day addresses indicates massive on-chain activity, but it also raises questions about the quality of that activity. Still, Solana’s ability to attract and retain over a million long-term addresses is a positive sign of adoption and trust. As the ecosystem matures, distinguishing between short-term noise and long-term user growth will be key to evaluating real success. With its high-speed, low-cost infrastructure, Solana DEX addresses are likely to continue growing — both in quantity and quality.

The Solana network has voted to approve the new Alpenglow consensus protocol. The proposal, known as SIMD-0326, passed with 98.27% support, far exceeding the required 66.67% threshold. This shows strong validator participation and overwhelming support for the changes. The Alpenglow protocol, developed by infrastructure firm Anza, will replace Solana’s current systems: Proof-of-History and TowerBFT. Currently, Proof-of-History timestamps transactions to keep them in order, while TowerBFT manages the voting process for consensus. The upgrade unveiled on Monday introduces two powerful components — Votor and Rotor. Votor will slash transaction finality times from over 12 seconds to just 150 milliseconds, giving users near-instant confirmations. Rotor, which will launch later, will reduce data transfers between validators, making it ideal for high-demand sectors like DeFi and blockchain gaming. Kyle Samani, Managing Partner at Multicoin Capital, highlighted the importance of the upgrade. “Alpenglow is the most significant rewrite of the Solana protocol to date. Its passage today paves the way for faster processing and finality, and for internet capital markets to emerge,” he said. He added, “Alpenglow will be an important mile marker on our way to 1 million transactions per second.” As Solana prepares to roll out the upgrade, its price has seen slight movement. The upcoming Alpenglow upgrade for Solana aims to enhance its speed and scalability. Hence, Solana can compete with top networks and draw in high-volume applications.

DeFi Development Corp recently acquired 196,141 SOL, raising its Solana holdings to over 2.02 million SOL, using merely 0.4% of its $5 billion credit line. This acquisition positions DeFi Development Corp as a major player in Solana's ecosystem and highlights institutional confidence in Solana's long-term potential amidst competing blockchain networks. The acquisition underscores a strong commitment to Solana, aiming to stake newly purchased tokens, which could enhance Solana’s network and validator infrastructure. This decision positions the corporation as a pioneering force in blockchain asset management. The acquisition aligns with Solana's growing institutional interest and supports long-term ecosystem stability. By focusing on stakeholder benefits through continuous SOL purchases, the firm demonstrates the viability of blockchain-based treasury strategies. Future implications could see increased operational efficiency and network security through enhanced validator participation. Historical trends show aggressive cryptocurrency accumulation can influence corporate strategies, akin to S&P companies adopting Bitcoin.

Solana continues to attract significant institutional recognition and strategic positioning within the digital asset landscape, driven by key developments focused on broader adoption and financial infrastructure. A major milestone occurred as SOL Strategies, a prominent Canadian blockchain company with substantial Solana holdings, secured approval to list its shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. Trading commenced on September 9, marking a significant step in traditional financial market acceptance for entities deeply invested in the Solana ecosystem. SOL Strategies holds approximately $84 million worth of Solana tokens within its treasury.

The Solana ecosystem benefits from growing validation as a repository for corporate treasuries. Beyond SOL Strategies, organizations like DeFi Development Corp and Upex are publicly known to hold substantial Solana reserves, collectively amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars. These strategic allocations reflect deepening institutional confidence in Solana's long-term viability and technological infrastructure. Analysts frequently cite Solana as a leading growth candidate among alternative cryptocurrencies for 2025, pointing to its expanding adoption base and the robustness of its underlying network.

A major catalyst on the horizon is the prospect of a US Solana Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF). Market observers anticipate potential regulatory approval as early as October 2025. Such approval is projected to unlock significant institutional capital, with estimates suggesting inflows between $3.8 billion and $7.2 billion. This potential event represents a major gateway for regulated traditional finance capital seeking exposure to Solana, accelerating mainstream acceptance within clear regulatory parameters.

Continuous network enhancements contribute to Solana's positive momentum. Ongoing technical upgrades focus on scalability, reliability, and security, fostering a more robust environment for decentralized applications and broader ecosystem growth. This commitment to innovation underpins the increasing institutional interest and positions Solana as a key player navigating the next phase of blockchain integration into the global financial system.