Solana (SOL) is making headlines once again, experiencing a notable surge of 20% in just 24 hours.
This uptick in market interest comes in the wake of the conclusion of Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial, a once-influential figure in the crypto sphere.
Bankman-Fried, through his ventures Alameda Research and FTX, had accumulated over $1 billion in Solana tokens, positioning him as a key proponent of the currency.
The journey of Solana has been marked by dramatic shifts. In November 2022, the cryptocurrency faced a significant downturn triggered by a CoinDesk report that exposed potential weaknesses in Bankman-Fried’s financial empire.
This report precipitated a loss of confidence in SOL, leading to a drop in its value. However, the landscape began to shift as Bankman-Fried’s legal troubles escalated, culminating in a guilty verdict on seven charges.
In the aftermath of these events, wallets associated with the now-bankrupt FTX exchange have reportedly moved an estimated $102 million in SOL tokens to various crypto exchanges.
This movement is typically indicative of a potential sale in the open market. Despite these transactions, Solana’s value has shown resilience, continuing its upward trajectory.
Market analysts are closely observing these developments, with some suggesting that the FTX estate’s reserves of SOL may be dwindling. This hypothesis is supported by data from SponOnChain, an on-chain analytics tool.
Adding to the positive sentiment around Solana, institutional interest appears to be on the rise. Recent data highlights a significant uptick in investments, as evidenced by the Grayscale Solana Trust (GSOL) shares trading at a nearly 900% premium over the spot value of SOL held per share. This surge points to a growing demand for Solana among regulated funds.
Further bolstering the optimism around Solana, Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Invest, shared her perspective in a CNBC interview.
"Ether was faster and cheaper than bitcoin," ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood said, discussing cryptocurrency with @SquawkCNBC. "Solana is even faster and cost-effective than Ether." https://t.co/ELYLeHJfHJ pic.twitter.com/JhBHFPAgee
— CNBC (@CNBC) November 14, 2023
Wood compared Solana favorably against Ethereum, currently the most widely-used blockchain, in terms of technical capabilities. She noted that while Ethereum offered advantages over Bitcoin in terms of speed and cost, Solana has outpaced Ethereum on these fronts.
