Solana price has retreated by 16.8% from the year-to-date high as the recent crypto momentum faded.
Solana (SOL) was trading at $220 on Sunday, bringing its market cap to $105 billion, and making it the fifth-biggest cryptocurrency.
SOL has numerous catalysts that could propel the price higher in the longer term. It has become the biggest competitor to Ethereum (ETH), the biggest blockchain in the world.
According to DeFi Llama, its total value locked has jumped by 18% in the last 30 days, bringing its total assets to over $9.12 billion. It has about $30 billion worth of stablecoins in its ecosystem.
Solana has also become the biggest player in the Decentralized Exchange industry. Its seven-day volume stood at over $29.7 billion, higher than Ethereum’s $21 billion. The biggest Solana DEX networks are Raydium, Orca, and Meteora.
Solana has a big share in the Decentralized Public Infrastructure and meme coin industry. Its DePIN networks like HiveMapper and Helium are doing well, while all Solana meme coins have a market cap of over $19 billion, led by Dogwifhat, Bonk, Peanut the Squirrel, and Popcat.
HiveMapper is aiming to be a better mapping solution than Google Maps. According to its website, it has already mapped about 17 million kilometers of roads and has a global coverage of 29%. Helium is disrupting the wireless industry by building a decentralized network.
Meanwhile, expectations are high that the incoming Trump administration will loosen crypto regulations, and potentially approve a spot SOL ETF. There are chances that such a fund will attract institutional capital, as we have seen with Ethereum, which has attracted over $2.26 billion in inflows in the past few months.
Solana price analysis: bullish patterns forms
The daily chart shows that the SOL price peaked at $264.40 on Nov. 22. It pulled back to $220, but dropped and retested the crucial support level at $205 — the highest swing in March this year, and the upper side of the cup and handle pattern.
A C&H pattern is made up of a horizontal line and a rounded bottom, and is a popular bullish continuation sign. Solana has also remained above the 50-day moving average — a sign that the bull market is still there.
It has formed a falling wedge pattern, a popular bullish sign. Therefore, the coin will likely have a strong bullish breakout in the coming weeks. The first target will be the year-to-date high of $264, followed by $400.
