Solana Surpasses Ethereum in Monthly Trading Volume Amid Strong Price Rebound

In a notable development, Solana (SOL) has overtaken Ethereum (ETH) in monthly trading volume on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) for the first time.

According to data from crypto analytics platform DefiLlama, Solana’s trading volume reached $56.84 billion in July 2024, surpassing Ethereum’s $53.86 billion.

This development highlights a remarkable shift in the crypto landscape as Solana’s ecosystem gains momentum. While Ethereum has long been the dominant player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, Solana’s recent performance underscores a growing trend of diversification within the market. Other notable performers in July included Arbitrum with $24.56B, Binance Smart Chain (BSC) at $17.88B, and Base with $15.554B, though these figures exclude Layer 2 (L2) solutions.

Notably, the surge in Solana’s trading volume is partly attributed to the excitement surrounding Solana-based meme tokens. The emergence of platforms like Pump.fun has significantly contributed to this volume increase.

According to Parsec Finance analyst Kezfourtwez, the Pump.fun platform has seen an unprecedented level of activity. Nearly 1.6 million coins have been launched since its inception, including 6,000 between July 31 and August 1. This frenzy has led to record-breaking daily revenues, with Pump.fun reaching a peak of $2.3 million on July 31.

However, the rapid influx of new tokens and the high trading volume have raised concerns about the sustainability of this growth. Analysts worry that the excessive creation of coins and the high turnover in liquidity could lead to an unstable market environment. Kezfourtwez expressed concerns that the market might face a sharp correction if the trend continues, noting that current market dynamics resemble previous high-volatility periods.

“Currently [the] number of coins [exceeds] the amount of capital needed to sustain growth,” tweeted Kezfourtwez. “The daily rate of extraction on Solana is huge, anecdotally the trenches have been seeing pretty monster volumes across the board on new coins lately (multiple daily occurrence’s of $20m+ in the last week) yet very few coins are able to break 9 figures.” 

The rise in Solana’s trading volume is part of a larger trend. Notably, according to DefiLlama data, DEX trading volume relative to centralized exchanges (CEXs) hit an all-time high last month, surpassing 14.3%.

Meanwhile, despite the market’s inherent volatility, Solana’s recent performance has been striking, with its price rebound significantly outpacing Ethereum’s. Year-to-date, Solana’s price has surged approximately 582%, starkly contrasting Ethereum’s 70% increase, underscoring growing investor confidence in Solana.