Solana is facing growing pressure. Weakening investor interest in leveraged long positions, strong competition from Ethereum, and institutional hesitation regarding developments on its network suggest that SOL’s future is not without question marks. Nevertheless, Solana shows signs of a healthy ecosystem and technological innovation.
Investor confidence is waning
The native SOL token has been unable to return above the $180 mark since the end of May, increasing uncertainty about its future development. Perpetual futures funding has fallen into negative territory, indicating a prevailing interest in short positions — a relatively unusual phenomenon in the typically optimistic cryptocurrency market.
Weakening confidence among traders may signal a temporary slowdown in the growth trend. At the same time, pressure is mounting from second layers on Ethereum, which are gradually eroding Solana’s market share.
Nevertheless, the ecosystem retains some strengths, such as user-friendliness, a high staking ratio (66.5%), and growing activity in applications such as Jito. In addition, staking yields of 7.3% motivate holders to stay involved for the long term.
Revenue growth vs. institutional skepticism
In the second quarter of 2025, Solana generated operating revenue of $271.8 million, more than double that of Ethereum. Decentralized application activity also remains high, with users paying over $460 million USD in fees in 30 days. These figures point to a functional and vibrant ecosystem that is attracting developers.
On the other hand, some players, such as Robinhood and Coinbase, prefer their own infrastructure due to concerns about MEV and less control over validators. If similar concerns spread to other institutions, this could limit Solana’s growth. Developments will largely depend on whether Ethereum softens its aggressive pricing policy and allows for fairer competition.
