Solana DApps Volume Up 46% In One Week — Is $180 SOL The Next Stop?

Solana native token SOL (SOL) experienced a 9% drop in two days after peaking at $161.80 on September 29, marking the highest level in seven weeks. This correction reflected a broader altcoin market capitalization (excluding stablecoins) of nearly $800 billion in late September, before dropping to $739 billion on October 1.

SOL prices are trending, supported by strong TVL and low fees.

Despite this setback, Solana's network usage increased last week, prompting traders to question whether SOL has the potential to outperform its competitors.

In particular, despite the recent correction, the price of SOL increased by 10.4% in the last 30 days, which indicates that the overall market sentiment is positive. Moreover, SOL continues to be the fourth largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and third by total value locked (TVL), which measures the amount invested in the network's smart contracts.

The Solana network distinguishes itself with low latency and extremely low transaction fees, especially when compared to major competitors such as Ethereum and BNB Chain (BNB). According to GasFeesNow, the average transaction price on Solana is only $0.02, while Ether's (ETH) average is $2.50 and BNB Chain's is around $0.08. In this regard, Solana's strategy of enhancing network strength through its verifiers has proven to be effective.

However, lower fees alone do not guarantee increased revenue or network activity. However, they provide a competitive advantage to users who prefer not to rely on complex and costly layer-2 solutions. For example, the Pump.fun memecoin launchpad has been a huge success among traders, reaching 65,000 daily active addresses by the end of July.

SOL potential comes from gaming and mobile applications.

Experienced asset managers like Vanck believe that the SOL price can grow by 120% from the current level. A Sept. 25 VanEck report cites institutional adoption potential and value from Ethereum layer-2 solutions as key drivers of Solana's improved investor awareness.

Additionally, the September 24 announcement of Gameshift — a game development API that uses Google Cloud architecture and is supported by Solana Labs — was highlighted as a potential boost to demand on the network. Gameshift aims to provide traditional game developers with comprehensive Web3 services, including integration of non-perishable tokens (NFTs) and digital assets.

Investors are also hoping for a new Solana-backed smartphone to be launched at a price below $499. According to Solana Labs, in addition to the much-anticipated token airdrops, the tool will feature an improved storage of decentralized applications (DApps) to better handle emerging use cases.

Given this positive outlook, investors believe that the recent surge in activity on Solana's network will eventually translate into higher demand for SOL. The network's total value locked (TVL) increased to 36.1 million SOL on September 30, remaining essentially flat compared to the previous two weeks, but 3 percent below a two-year high. With $5.5 billion in deposits, it surpassed BNB Chain's $4.6 billion TVL, according to Defillama data.

However, according to Dapradar data, the most significant highlight in Solana's activity is DApp volumes, which have increased by 46% compared to the previous 7-day period. In comparison, Ethereum DApps increased 12% during the same period, while BNB Chain's numbers remained flat. In particular, Ethereum's gains were heavily dependent on Balancer, as its leading DApp, Uniswap, saw a 6% drop in volume over a 7-day period.

Related: DeFi Resurgence Driven by Fed Cuts, China, Key Protocols

Meanwhile, gains on Solana happened across the board, with Marinade Finance gaining 66%, Pump.fun 93%, and Solland jumping 143% over the past seven days. Similarly, results from Jupiter Exchange, which has collected more than 2.77 million unique addresses, saw a 13 percent increase in active addresses participating in smart contracts last week.

Based on current news flow and network activity, the price of SOL seems poised for further upside from the altcoin market, which could pave the way for a bull run to $180 and above.

This article is not intended for general information purposes and should not be construed as legal or investment advice. The views, ideas and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.