As of January 2, 2025, SOL is trading at $205.64, an increase of 8.48%. This rise is supported by growing investor confidence and expectations for the proposed Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF).

During the day, SOL peaked at $205.64 and dropped to $187.82. This activity is considered as a reflection of increasing demand and positive market expectations.

In the futures market, SOL open interest reached $3.42 billion. This rise shows that investors’ interest in Solana has increased and there is a strong momentum in the market.

Perpetual contracts continue to dominate the futures market with open interest of $3.4 billion, while traditional futures have a share of $15.8 million.

While open positions of perpetual contracts increased by 10.67% in the last 24 hours, futures exhibited a remarkable growth of 85.59%. The overall increase of 10.87% in total open positions reveals the desire of investors to benefit from the mobility in the SOL price.

Binance took the largest share with open interest of $1.7 billion, while Bybit reported $1.1 billion and OKX $520.5 million. SOL on Binance increased by 6.32% in the last 24 hours, while its seven-day performance reached 6.96%. Other major exchanges such as Coinbase and Kraken also saw similar increases.

Solana and Ethereum are two major blockchain networks differentiated by their fundamental technical structures. Solana provides fast transaction times by combining Proof of History (PoH) and Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanisms, while Ethereum uses only PoS.

Additionally, Solana’s transaction fees are generally fixed at as low as $0.00025, while Ethereum’s gas fees fluctuate.

While Ethereum has a larger community and well-established ecosystem, Solana’s low-cost and fast transaction advantages make it an attractive option for developers, especially in the DeFi, NFT and gaming sectors.

The expectation of a Solana ETF approval by July 31, 2025 creates a positive tone in the market. According to Polymarket data, the probability of ETF approval has increased from 50% in December to 65%. Factors such as increased investor interest, whale purchases and concentration in futures transactions put upward pressure on Solana’s price.

Despite this optimistic outlook, risks such as network stability issues and regulatory investigations could negatively impact investor confidence. Despite these challenges, Solana continues to attract the attention of investors.

Solana strengthens its position in the market by making a strong start to 2025. With increasing open positions in futures transactions, low transaction fees and speed advantage, Solana increases its competitiveness against Ethereum.

Speculations regarding proposed ETF approval and increasing adoption rates are among the key factors supporting SOL’s rise in the crypto ecosystem.