Solana (SOL) Shows Signs of Recovery as FTX Unstakes $23M Tokens

As a seasoned crypto investor with a knack for navigating market turbulence, I can’t help but feel a sense of cautious optimism when observing Solana’s recent performance. The resilience shown by SOL amidst the broader bearish sentiment is indeed commendable.


On Thursday, Solana’s native cryptocurrency SOL displayed a robust performance, inching up by around 3%, bucking the bearish trend prevalent in the broader crypto market. Notably, even as heavyweights like Bitcoin and Ethereum persisted in their struggles, SOL’s value managed to hold its ground. As of writing, Solana’s coin was trading at $134.8, while Bitcoin and Ethereum were priced at $58,158 and $2,358 respectively. Solana’s market cap stood at a substantial $63.07 billion, with a 24-hour volume of approximately $2.66 billion. In comparison, Bitcoin’s market cap was $1.15 trillion, with a 24-hour volume of $38.51 billion, and Ethereum’s market cap was $283.80 billion, with a 24-hour volume of $15 billion. Despite the ongoing bearish sentiments in the crypto market, SOL seemed to showcase a degree of resilience.

As per CoinMarketCap’s report, Solana (SOL) is currently being traded at approximately $135. Earlier in August, it had dropped below $130, but a recent surge might be related to moves made by FTX, the troubled crypto exchange, and Alameda Research, its associated firm.

This morning, a wallet labeled as “H4y…gFZ,” linked to FTX and Alameda, withdrew approximately 177,693 SOL, equivalent to around $23 million, from the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) network of Solana, based on data from Solscan.

FTX’s Complex Relationship with Solana

The act of FTX/Alameda putting out these tokens has sparked renewed discussion about whether or not these digital assets might be moved to centralized exchanges, a situation that recalls November 2023 when the same wallet offloaded $67 million worth of SOL and shifted it to Coinbase.

In that span, Lookonchain, a blockchain company, disclosed that an extinct exchange had cashed out around 3.96 million Solana (SOL), which equates to approximately $160 million at the time. Yet, it remained ambiguous whether the firm swiftly liquidated this amount as part of their reorganization process.

In late December 2023, approximately $90 million worth of SOL was transferred from another problematic trading platform’s additional location and deposited into Coinbase, following the process of unstaking.

It’s uncertain why this recent withdrawal is taking place, but it’s worth noting that FTX continues to hold a substantial amount of Solana tokens. Approximately 7.057 million SOL tokens, valued at around $943 million, are still locked in the network.

Legal Fallout Surrounding FTX and Alameda Executives

Prior to its fall in November 2022, FTX had strong connections with the Solana network. When FTX failed, it created a significant ripple effect across the blockchain industry, causing the value of SOL to drop as low as $8.

After that point, it appears that FTX has been progressively liquidating its Solana assets. Reports suggest that some of the SOL might have been disposed of using over-the-counter brokerage services.

The latest withdrawal comes as FTX and its top executives remain under intense federal investigation, with authorities determined to hold everyone involved accountable for the collapse of the once $40 billion-valued exchange.

Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research and ex-business partner of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), is preparing for sentencing on September 24. In relation to SBF’s trial, she admitted guilt by agreeing to all criminal accusations brought against her through a plea deal.

In response to court proceedings, her attorney, Anjan Sahni, has made a plea to conceal private and health-related details from her case file, specifically from letters vouching for her personality and compliance, that the judge will take into account while deciding her penalty.

Attention has been directed towards Michelle Bond, the companion of Ryan Salame – another FTX executive who admitted guilt in campaign finance violations. Bond stands accused of plotting to amass illegal campaign funds for her 2022 congressional run, with the alleged source being a $400,000 payment from FTX.

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2024-09-12 12:06