In the past few months, BNB Chain's $100 million permanent liquidity plan has attracted market attention, rapidly boosting the development of its meme coin and DeFi sectors. However, at the same time, Solana is quietly building strength, preparing for a new round of strong comeback.
Recently, Solana has released several positive signals, combined with factors like capital inflow, policy adjustments, and ecosystem collaboration, the 'recovery' of the SOL ecosystem seems inevitable. So, can Solana recreate the glory of the past? What changes will its meme ecosystem, DeFi development, and the entire public chain landscape face?
01
Solana's fifth anniversary.
Trading volume and ecosystem scale have surged.
On March 16, 2025, Solana officially celebrated its fifth anniversary on X (Twitter) and shared impressive achievements:
✅ Cumulative transaction count: over 408 billion
✅ Number of verification nodes: over 1,300
✅ Decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volume: over $987 billion
This data indicates that despite severe market fluctuations, Solana's network effects are still strengthening, with user and trading activities rebounding. For the meme sector, this undoubtedly provides a lower-cost, more efficient trading environment, which may spawn a new wave of blockbuster projects.
02
CME Group plans to launch Solana futures.
Institutional capital may enter in large volumes.
CME Group, one of the world's largest derivatives exchanges, announced plans to launch Solana futures contracts on March 17, currently awaiting regulatory approval.
🔹 Contract type: 500 SOL standard contracts & 25 SOL mini contracts
🔹 Target: To meet institutional investors' demand for regulated cryptocurrency derivatives.
🔹 Potential impact: Paving the way for future Solana spot ETFs and driving traditional financial capital inflow.
If approved, Solana futures will become the third major mainstream cryptocurrency futures product after BTC and ETH, further increasing Solana's acceptance in the institutional market.
03
Franklin Templeton application
Solana Spot ETF
Globally renowned asset management company Franklin Templeton has officially applied to the U.S. SEC for a Solana spot ETF.
Why are ETFs important?
📈 After the approval of the Bitcoin ETF, institutional demand for altcoin ETFs has surged.
📈 Once approved, Solana may become the second L1 asset recognized by mainstream financial markets after ETH.
📈 ETF capital inflow may provide long-term support for SOL prices.
If the Solana ETF is approved, institutional investors in the U.S. market will be able to easily allocate SOL assets, further solidifying its position in the public chain sector.
04
Jump trading returns to Solana.
Is liquidity about to return?
Jump Trading is one of the most active market makers in the previous bull market for the Solana ecosystem, and their return indicates that liquidity in the Solana ecosystem is recovering.
🔹 Providing deeper liquidity to reduce trading slippage.
🔹 Increasing market activity to attract more institutional capital.
🔹 Potentially driving a new round of growth in the DeFi and meme sectors.
In recent months, BNB Chain's $100 million liquidity plan has indeed boosted market sentiment, but once Jump trading reestablishes liquidity in Solana, the high-frequency trading advantages of the SOL ecosystem will be further amplified, and it may even surpass BNB Chain.
05
Solana official OTC trading.
A key step to stabilize the market?
Recently, there have been rumors that Solana is conducting OTC trading, which may indicate they are preparing for market stability.
Two possibilities:
1️⃣ Buy back SOL tokens to reduce market selling pressure and boost token prices.
2️⃣ OTC trading may be aimed at attracting new institutional capital and enhancing confidence in the ecosystem.
If these operations are true, it suggests that the Solana ecosystem is undergoing a new strategic layout, which could become a catalyst for stabilizing and further increasing SOL prices.
06
Unlocking of Trump-related tokens.
Is market capital about to rotate?
One of the most watched memes in the Solana ecosystem, the Trump (TRUMP) token, will undergo two rounds of unlocking in April and July.
📅 The small-scale unlock in April may have little impact.
📅 The large-scale unlock in July may bring capital flow.
The direction of unlocked funds may be key to influencing the next movement of the SOL ecosystem. If market sentiment is optimistic, funds may continue to stay within the SOL ecosystem, driving a new meme frenzy. However, if there is short-term selling pressure, these funds may flow into other public chains such as BNB Chain or Ethereum, which is also a risk point that needs ongoing attention.
07
Solana ecosystem collaboration.
Counterattack against BNB Chain?
As the BNB Chain ecosystem shines in the meme sector, major projects in the Solana ecosystem seem to be joining forces, preparing for a new round of growth.
Meme sector: Established memes like $WIF and $BONK remain active, with new projects continuously emerging.
DeFi sector: With the recovery of liquidity, the DEX trading volume and yields in the Solana ecosystem are warming up.
NFT ecosystem: Major Solana NFT markets like Magic Eden are still expanding their business, with new projects continuously launching.
BNB Chain has indeed gained a first-mover advantage, but the rise of the Solana ecosystem may shuffle the market, and the next few months will be a critical observation period.
📈 In the short term, BNB Chain continues to dominate the market with rapid capital inflow.
📈 However, Solana's advancements in ETF, futures, and liquidity may drive a strong comeback after the second quarter.
📈 The liquidity competition in the meme and DeFi sectors will become the most noteworthy game in the public chain ecosystem.
👉 What do you think? Can Solana really make a strong comeback?
👉 Or will BNB Chain continue to dominate the market?