Executive Summary
The Story So Far
Why This Matters
Who Thinks What?
Solana (SOL) experienced a 4.9% price decline to $153.49 this week, despite strong institutional support evidenced by $336 million in weekly exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows over ten consecutive days. The drop coincided with a scheduled unlock of approximately 193,000 SOL tokens, valued at $30 million, by the bankrupt Alameda Research on November 11, 2025.
Market Dynamics and Price Action
The price decline saw Solana break below key technical support levels at $156. This downward movement occurred on elevated trading volume, which was 17.25% above the seven-day average, indicating active repositioning among market participants.
Despite the price dip, institutional demand for Solana-based products remained robust. Solana spot ETFs recorded their tenth consecutive day of positive inflows, with weekly totals reaching $336 million across various products.
Grayscale and Bitwise Solana ETFs now collectively hold approximately $351 million worth of the cryptocurrency. Bitwise notably led weekly inflows with $118 million, maintaining a yield-focused strategy through staking rewards that average over 7% annually.
Major financial institutions, including Rothschild Investment and PNC Financial Services, have also disclosed new holdings in Solana-based products. Furthermore, Grayscale introduced options trading for its Solana Trust ETF, providing institutional traders with additional hedging tools.
Alameda Research Unlocks
The selling pressure on SOL intensified following another token unlock from the FTX estate’s bankrupt entity, Alameda Research. The release of 193,000 SOL tokens on November 11, 2025, is part of an ongoing monthly vesting schedule.
These structured releases, managed under bankruptcy oversight, began in November 2023 and involve the gradual distribution of over 8 million tokens. The proceeds typically flow to major exchanges to facilitate creditor repayment. The bankruptcy estate still holds approximately 5 million tokens in locked or staked positions, with smaller monthly unlocks expected to continue through 2028 based on pre-2021 investment agreements.
Large order book data from Coinglass revealed elevated whale activity around Solana since Monday. Whales accumulated roughly $26 million worth of net spot inflows across major exchanges like Binance, OKX, and Coinbase over three days, while also executing over $457 million in long positions on Binance and OKX during the same period.
Expanding Retail Access
In a move to broaden Solana’s accessibility, U.S.-based SoFi Bank recently announced its support for crypto trading services. Solana’s official account confirmed that SoFi is the first bank to enable direct access to SOL through user checking accounts.
Technical Outlook
From a technical perspective, Solana’s 60-minute chart shows accelerating bearish momentum after breaking critical support at $156. The breakdown occurred between 15:00-16:00 UTC, with the price collapsing from $155.40 to $152.86 on volume 123% above the hourly average.
Primary support for SOL is now established at the $152.80 demand zone, with secondary levels at $150. Immediate resistance sits at $156, which previously acted as support, and further at $160.
Outlook
Solana currently navigates a complex environment, facing predictable selling pressure from systematic token releases by Alameda Research while simultaneously benefiting from robust institutional inflows and expanding retail access. The interplay between these opposing forces will likely dictate its short-term price trajectory.
