Key takeaways
Why is Solana trading so high despite weak sentiment?
Because SOL is trading at 3 times its TVL, with strong inflows from institutions like BSOL ETF driving up prices.
What do negative financing and soft derivatives mean for SOL?
Traders are cautious and lean towards short-term, but spot buyers are keeping SOL price stable.
Solarium [SOL] The numbers don’t match the mood. The network now has over $40 billion in user assets and SOL trades at over 3 times its TVL.
Still, on-chain sentiment is weak and funding rates turn deeply negative as traders reduce risk. Meanwhile, Wall Street continues to buy.
What is happening?
Solana valuation well above its TVL
Solana Apps now own approximately $40 billion in user assets, yet SOL trades at over 3x the ecosystem’s TVL. The chart shows how this multiple expanded through late 2024 and early 2025, even as TVL continued to rise.
Source: TokenTerminal/X
That means the price strength was driven by external flows, which drove up the asset faster than the on-chain value grew.
Stablecoins, liquid staking, DEXs, lending and RWAs drove TVL towards all-time highs, but the FDV/TVL ratio remained elevated.
In simple terms: Solana was aggressively priced and markets were paying a premium for the exposure.
The institutions did not hesitate
While Solana seemed “expensive” relative to TVL, that didn’t stop institutions from buying.
Source: Eric Balchunas/X
Bitwise’s BSOL ETF recorded $417 million in weekly inflows, the highest of all crypto ETPs. Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas called it a “great debut” and the data backs it up.
Although Bitcoin ETFs like IBIT slowed this week, BSOL continued to move. Wall Street money is coming in and higher prices could be driven by institutions.
Sentiment is weak, but price maintains its range
Source: Coinalyze
Derivatives data shows that open interest has fallen from highs and average funding rates have remained negative around -0.17. This means that traders have been inclined to sell short positions and have paid to be in short positions.
However, the spot price has not plummeted.
Source: TradingView
On the daily chart, SOL is still holding within a narrow band of $180-$195, with an RSI near 44 and a slightly negative CMF. This means caution.
Bears have conviction in the derivatives market, but spot buyers are still soaking up supply. If funding returns to neutral, this reset could turn into a rebound rather than another leg down.
