Solana Gains Momentum—Will Whale Support Push SOL to $180?

• With a fully diluted market cap of around $72 billion, Solana continues to solidify its position as a major crypto asset in the U.S. market.
• Solana’s utility is expanding rapidly, especially in real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and stablecoin activity.

Solana (SOL), one of the top U.S.-based cryptocurrencies, is also experiencing increased interest from retail and institutional investors. At the weekend, the digital currency recorded a dramatic surge in trading activity with its average volume rising by 24% to about $5 billion at the beginning of European trading on Saturday. The altcoin’s fully diluted market capitalization of around $72 billion places it as a key feature of the crypto asset market.

Solana Network Utility Amid Global Crypto Adoption

On the other hand, progress in global trade policies and economic forecasts is directing investors towards crypto markets. As U.S. retaliatory tariffs start to settle, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and other altcoins have become go-to tools for hedging wider economic uncertainty. Wall Street analysts, such as a group at J.P. Morgan, recently reduced their forecasts for U.S. economic expansion in 2025 by 1.6%.

The update has sparked rumors of an imminent global economic downturn, leading to increased activity in cryptocurrency markets. In the blockchain space, Solana continues to exhibit fast ecosystem growth, particularly in real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. This growth has been driven significantly by an increase in stablecoin minting. At present, the Solana network has a total value locked (TVL) of about $6.6 billion.

Since the U.S. President Donald Trump was re-elected in late 2024, over $8 billion worth of stablecoins have been minted on the platform, highlighting its increasing popularity. Mainstream financial integration has further amplified Solana’s network utility.

On Friday, PayPal, the leader in the payments industry, unveiled plans to expand its crypto solutions in the U.S. with the addition of support for Chainlink (LINK) and Solana, as mentioned in our previous report. The announcement also further extends PayPal’s crypto capabilities via its subsidiary Venmo. This reinforces SOL’s increasing presence within traditional financial platforms.

A Look At Solana Price Technicals

Source: TradingView

In movements in the crypto market, the price action of SOL has started to show indications of likely recovery after a long period of corrective action initiated by general market sentiment since President Trump’s second term began. Technical indicators indicate a building base around the $113 level.

There is a double bottom formation on the daily chart that goes alongside a bullish divergence in the Relative Strength Index (RSI), indicating that a trend reversal is possible. Amid the surge in SOL, the short liquidations have shot to $8 million, per the Coinglass data. 

If Bitcoin price can regain bullish grounds and breach the $85,000 mark, analysts project that SOL will also do the same and maybe breach the $177 level. On the other hand, a failure to hold above $113 could lead to downward pressure, possibly pushing the price below the $100 mark in the short term.