coindesk.com
With bitcoin $BTC$111,933.36 stuck just above $110,000 and ether ($ETH) consolidating after hitting fresh records, Solana $SOL$209.89 has emerged as a standout performer in the crypto market recently.
The token traded around $211 on Monday, up 33% from early August lows, making it one of the best performers in the CoinDesk 20 Index in the past month. Against bitcoin, $SOL has gained 34% over the past month, and it has strengthened 14% versus $ETH since mid-August.
The rally reflects a broader rotation into altcoins, analysts said.
"The season of profit redistribution among holders of cryptocurrencies continues,” Sergei Gorev, head of risk at YouHodler, said in a market note shared with CoinDesk. He said liquidity has been moving out of $BTC into second-tier tokens, with "a noticeable increase in the positive dynamics in capital flows to $SOL."
Such flows could be long-term as corporate investors look for large, liquid projects to hold, Gorev added, naming $SOL alongside with $XRP $XRP$2.8446 as the "next interesting market ideas."
Jeff Dorman, chief investment officer at Arca, tipped $SOL to replicate ether’s turnaround earlier this year. He pointed to Ethereum’s resurgence after stablecoin adoption, strong ETF inflows and the relentless bid from digital asset treasuries, or DATs, helped $ETH rally nearly 200% since April.
"$SOL appears poised to repeat the exact same playbook that $ETH just executed in the coming months," Dorman wrote in a fresh report.
The first U.S.-listed Solana ETF launched in July, but it was futures-based. Several asset managers, including VanEck and Fidelity, have filed for spot products with decisions due later this year, Dorman said.
Meanwhile, at least three Solana-focused DATs are raising funds that could channel up to $2.65 billion into $SOL over the next month, he added.
At only one-fifth of $ETH's market capitalization, $SOL's price could be even more reactive to the flows if they materialize.
"$SOL might be the most obvious long right now," Dorman said. "If the price of $ETH rose almost 200% on roughly $20 billion of new demand, what do you think happens to $SOL on $2.5 billion or more of new demand?"
Recent news could also add to the momentum. Nasdaq-listed digital asset conglomerate Galaxy Digital tokenized its shares on Solana, while the approval of the Alpenglow upgrade promises to improve transaction speed and finality.
Read more: TRUMP, $XRP, and $SOL Options Signal a Potential Year-End Altcoin Season: PowerTrade