Despite the short-term volatility in the cryptocurrency market, blockchain networks with solid foundations continue to attract capital, even as activity on some chains weakens and key support levels are breached in turn.
The widespread fear sentiment has significantly dampened the participation of retail investors across the crypto market, putting pressure on usage metrics. However, this is not enough to shake the role and long-term value of core networks. In the context of a clearly declining risk appetite, Solana continues to stand out as one of the Layer-1 blockchains demonstrating relatively good resilience.
The network revenue of Solana (SOL) once surged and peaked in January, before plummeting to its lowest level since the beginning of the year.
This adjustment phase has wiped out previous gains, reflecting a slowdown in trading activity on decentralized applications. Notably, this contraction aligns more with the extreme fear state of the market, rather than indicating a structural weakening of the network.
At the same time, the number of active addresses weekly also recorded a downward trend during the same period, reflecting a risk-averse sentiment and the withdrawal of retail money from the cryptocurrency market.
After a sharp correction, performance indicators are gradually stabilizing around recent lows, as volatility begins to narrow and the market enters a more cautious accumulation phase.
Solana whales are increasing accumulation below $120.
When Solana's price fell below $120 on December 18, the accumulation activity of large wallets – often referred to as 'whales' – increased significantly across multiple addresses.
Notably, the wallet G6gemN has taken advantage of this correction to buy 41,000 SOL, equivalent to about $5 million. This move reflects a proactive strategy: taking advantage of the price weakening phase to accumulate, rather than panic selling according to the market's short-term sentiment.
Historical data further clarifies the intent behind this. About eight months ago, this same wallet accumulated 24,528 SOL around the $122 area, before taking profit in the $175 area, generating about $1.28 million in profit.
The current accumulation wave seems to be repeating a familiar pattern: every time prices weaken, smart money flows back in instead of retreating. The behavior of whales shows significant confidence, even as fear sentiment spreads across the market.
The capital inflow into the SOL ETF offsets the spot selling pressure.
Solana spot ETFs recorded a net inflow of $11 million on December 18, indicating that demand from institutional investors remains steady even as spot prices weaken. These investment products continue to absorb supply in the market, playing a crucial supporting role amid the correction.
The cash flow from ETFs has somewhat neutralized the selling pressure in the recent decline, reflecting a buy positioning strategy when the market is engulfed in fear sentiment. As volatility increases, institutions seem ready to accumulate at lower price levels instead of retreating.
ETF activity is therefore reinforcing the underlying demand, helping to support the market against the short-term weakening of Solana's price.
Support is holding firm as momentum stabilizes.
From a technical perspective, at the time of writing, Solana is trading around $124, after experiencing a pullback from $122 to a low of $117. Notably, buying pressure emerged at just the right time and successfully defended this support zone, thereby driving the price back into a broader accumulation range between $122 and $145.
The fact that prices continue to hold above a crucial support area shows that selling pressure has been significantly absorbed, rather than expanding into a deeper downtrend. At the same time, momentum indicators are beginning to send positive signals. The MACD is forming a bullish crossover, while the RSI shows a bullish divergence, reflecting a clear weakening of selling pressure at recent lows.
In the context of Solana still trading within the established accumulation zone, the current technical setup is attracting the attention of traders, especially the potential for this support zone to continue holding as the overall market sentiment gradually stabilizes.