TLDR
- Solana overtook Ethereum in 24-hour DEX trading volume with $4.604 billion
- Alpenglow proposal could reduce block finality from 12.8 seconds to 150 milliseconds
- SOL price trading at $211.61 with key resistance at $220 and support at $185-$190
- Bullish trend line forming with support at $212 on hourly chart
- SOL recently formed a high at $217 after finding support near $192
Solana has recently made headlines in the cryptocurrency world by surpassing Ethereum in daily decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volume. This shift in market activity comes as Solana’s native token, SOL, experiences price growth and the network advances a major upgrade proposal.
Data from DeFiLlama showed Solana processed $4.604 billion in DEX trades within a 24-hour period. This put it ahead of Ethereum’s $4.435 billion and Binance Smart Chain’s $2.188 billion. Other networks like Base ($2.049 billion), Hyperliquid L1 ($1.04 billion), and Arbitrum ($845.6 million) followed behind.
This marks a change in the DEX landscape, where Ethereum has traditionally held the top position. The higher trading volume on Solana suggests increased trader activity and liquidity flowing to its platforms.
SOL price has been on an upward trajectory, starting a fresh increase above the $200 level. The price found support near the $192 zone before climbing past several resistance levels.
The bulls managed to push SOL above the $212 barrier, with the price forming a high at $217. Currently, SOL trades at $211.61 and remains above both the $212 level and the 100-hourly simple moving average.
Technical Analysis
A bullish trend line is forming with support at $212 on the hourly chart. The price is consolidating above the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level of the upward move from the $185 swing low to the $217 high.
On the upside, SOL faces resistance near $218, with the next major hurdle at $220. Breaking above this level could open the path toward $225, followed by $232, and potentially $250 if momentum continues.
If SOL fails to breach the $220 resistance, it might experience a downside correction. Initial support sits near $212, with major support at $210. A break below this level could push the price toward $202 and the 50% Fibonacci retracement level.
Should the price close below $202, it might decline further toward the $195 support zone. However, the ascending trendline between $185 and $190 is viewed as strong support by analysts.
Alpenglow Proposal
While Solana celebrates its DEX volume achievement, the community has begun voting on a major network upgrade called SIMD-0326, or Alpenglow. This proposal aims to reduce block finality from 12.8 seconds to about 150 milliseconds.
Developed by Anza, a Solana research group, the upgrade would bring Solana’s transaction speed closer to traditional payment networks like Visa and Mastercard. It introduces a system called Votor, allowing validators to notarize or skip blocks off-chain and send compact proofs on-chain.
Voting began at Epoch 840 and will run until Epoch 842, spanning about four days. The proposal requires a two-thirds majority for approval. Early turnout showed around 11% participation, with 10.6% voting in favor and 0.12% against.
The plan includes a fee of 1.6 SOL per epoch, set at about 80% of current voting costs. This fee would be burned, reducing inflation in the SOL supply.
Supporters believe Alpenglow could enhance Solana’s capability to handle real-time finance, gaming, and high-frequency applications. While already known for fast processing, this upgrade would move Solana toward near-instant confirmation.
The outcome of the Alpenglow vote, combined with the rise in DEX trading activity, will likely influence SOL’s price movement in the coming days. The cryptocurrency market is watching closely as Solana continues to strengthen its position in the DeFi ecosystem.
