Galaxy Digital Moves $100M ETH into SOL as Ethereum Faces Market Struggles

Galaxy Digital, led by Mike Novogratz, has reportedly shifted $100 million worth of ether (ETH) into solana (SOL), reflecting a strategic pivot as Ethereum’s market position weakens.

On-chain data reveals that Galaxy Digital transferred around 65,600 ETH (valued at approximately $105 million) to Binance over the past two weeks and withdrew 752,240 SOL, equating to about $98.37 million. The move coincides with ongoing concerns over Ethereum’s declining performance, as noted by financial institutions like Standard Chartered, which recently downgraded its price target for ETH.

Over the past month, Solana (SOL) has seen an 8% increase, while Ethereum (ETH) has dropped by nearly 20%, exacerbating skepticism surrounding the latter’s future in the market. Standard Chartered has also pointed to the struggles of Ethereum, especially in light of competition from blockchain networks like Solana, which has seen a dramatic surge in blockchain activity.

Data from Arkham reveals that Galaxy Digital still holds a substantial amount of ETH ($87.9 million) compared to SOL ($23.86 million). Despite this, the firm’s recent actions suggest a significant shift in its digital asset strategy, likely influenced by the unfavorable market trends for Ethereum.

Solana’s ecosystem is also gaining ground, with decentralized exchange (DEX) volume surpassing $500 billion in the last three months, while Ethereum’s DEX volume has remained below $400 billion. Additionally, Solana’s active addresses have surged to over 220 million, compared to Ethereum’s and its Layer-2 networks, which have just over 80 million active addresses combined.

As Ethereum faces these challenges, some within the community, like Tron’s Justin Sun, have suggested potential solutions such as imposing a tax on Layer-2 networks to help reduce supply and burn ETH. However, such ideas are still in the discussion phase and have not been incorporated into Ethereum’s improvement proposals.

Meanwhile, Ethereum-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have seen significant outflows, with nearly $600 million in net withdrawals over the last two months, signaling a shift away from ETH among institutional investors.