Solana Surges 5.52% as SEC Reviews Spot ETF Filing

Solana's latest price was $202.38, up 5.521% in the last 24 hours. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has acknowledged the filing for the Invesco Galaxy Spot Solana ETF, a proposed exchange-traded fund designed to track the spot price of Solana. This acknowledgement comes after Cboe BZX Exchange submitted a Form 19b-4 to propose a rule change for listing and trading the ETF, initiating the SEC’s formal review process. The filing is the latest Solana ETF to be filed this year and follows the REX Shares SOL ETF Application, which was filed in May and marked “immediately effective,” signaling that the launch could happen soon. The Invesco filing joins other filings from issuers like VanEck, 21Shares, Bitwise, Grayscale, Canary Capital, Franklin Templeton, and Fidelity, all of which are awaiting the SEC’s approval. Analysts remain optimistic about the chances of approval by October, encouraged by the existence of CME-listed Solana futures, which strengthens the argument for a spot product.

Despite the excitement surrounding a potential ETF approval, the SEC has remained cautious, delaying decisions while citing the need for further evaluation. One of the key debates is whether Solana should be classified as a commodity or a security, which could impact approval. In the United States, securities and commodities are regulated by different government organizations, and the classification of a cryptocurrency has far-reaching implications for how it can be sold, where it can be listed, and who has the right to sue in the event of regulatory violations. If a cryptocurrency is classified as a security, issuers and exchanges are required to seek the necessary licenses from their securities regulators, which is usually difficult to do. The crypto industry often ensures that cryptocurrency sales and developments do not trespass any securities laws, typically through decentralization. If a cryptocurrency is created in such a way that a securities regulator is unable to identify a central, coordinated group responsible for pumping the value of the token, the asset is less likely to be considered a security. However, the debate about the classification of Solana as a security or commodity is still ongoing, and its outcome is uncertain. This could lead to a more complex regulatory landscape where different cryptocurrencies are subject to varying rules and regulations.

Solana’s ecosystem has seen strong activity, driven by network upgrades and DeFi expansions. The co-founders, Anatoly Yakovenko and Raj Gokal, have not issued statements about specific price targets, but the ecosystem remains robust. The surge in trading volume suggests renewed institutional interest, with analysts signaling caution as trader sentiment is mixed, and profit-taking increases the volatility risks. Historically, Solana has experienced similar rallies, with past price surges in 2021 and 2023 leading to rapid gains, followed by sharp corrections. Analysts suggest that the current setup could lead to further gains if certain conditions, such as continued strong volume and technical indicators, remain positive. However, historical patterns indicate potential reversals due to broader market factors.

Solana has reclaimed the $200 level for the first time in August, amid renewed institutional interest. The likely reason for this price action is growing institutional interest, with Upexi emerging as the largest corporate Solana holder, with more than 2 million SOL. These holdings are currently valued at more than $400 million. Another standout is the DeFi Dev Corp., which accumulated nearly 1 million SOL by July 22. The company is executing an aggressive accumulation spree, having spent $19 million in just one week in July. Analysts at B2BINPAY believe that there is a strong case for Solana to increase further, citing on-chain activity that shows daily active wallets have almost hit 3 million, throughput has tripled since July, and DeFi TVL has reached its peak since 2022. Fresh NFT launches, GameFi growth, and Visa’s new USDC settlement pilot on Solana also add weight to the bullish sentiment.

Solana continues to dominate the decentralized exchange (DEX) ecosystem, outpacing other veteran networks such as Ethereum. Platforms such as Jupiter are also witnessing active engagement, with four new private AMMs debuting on the network. This trend follows the recent emergence of token launchpads, which have helped drive overall trading activities. In July, trading volume on Solana DEX touched $124.2 billion, up 56% from the previous month. Ethereum, its DEX counterpart, posted a volume of $87.1 billion during the same period, lagging Solana by 42%. Solana has held this lead for ten consecutive months, dating back to October 2024. Newcomers like Humidifi and Tessera saw billions in trades despite lacking front-end interfaces. Raydium led Solana’s DEX market share at 32.2%, with Meteora posting the largest growth at 145.9%. Direct DEX trades surged to $65.9B, overtaking aggregator flows for the first time this year. This trend aligns with the rise in new market players and an increase in trading volume, indicating a strong and growing ecosystem for Solana.

Recent developments indicate growing institutional confidence in Solana's infrastructure, highlighted by a significant corporate-level SOL investment valued at $165 million. This substantial allocation signals deepening trust in the network's long-term viability and technological capabilities among major financial entities.

The Solana ecosystem continues to demonstrate technical strength, with network analysts observing notable bullish patterns in its market structure. An ascending triangle formation has been identified on weekly charts, often interpreted as a continuation signal by technical traders. This pattern mirrors structures preceding previous sustained network activity expansion phases within the ecosystem.

On-chain metrics reveal substantial growth in Solana's decentralized finance sector, where the Total Value Locked (TVL) denominated in SOL tokens has recently reached a multi-year high exceeding 50 million SOL. This represents the highest TVL level recorded since mid-2022, reflecting sustained protocol activity and increased liquidity across DeFi applications built on the network.

Analysts report a significant technical shift in daily momentum indicators for Solana, with the Alpha Trend signal recently transitioning to green. This technical signal coincides with Solana trading above key moving averages, suggesting alignment between short-term momentum and longer-term market structure strength.

Observers note the timing of Solana's technical momentum shift aligns with broader industry adoption announcements and growing corporate engagement, suggesting these developments collectively strengthen the ecosystem's position. The combination of robust on-chain metrics, favorable technical structures, and increasing institutional participation creates a foundation supporting ongoing ecosystem development and network utilization.