Solana (Sol) has proven to be one of the most resilient crypto assets. Sol faced a massive price decline after the collapse of FTX in 2022. Cryptocurrency prices fell below $9 at the lowest point after the exchange collapse. Since its 2022 low, Sol has been undergoing a very surprising recovery. The assets hit an all-time high, the latest being $293.31 on January 19th this year.
Three Things That Can Make Solana Prices at $500
1. Spot Solana ETF
Currently there are seven SOPS SOL ETF applications awaiting approval by the SEC. According to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyfert, there is a 90% chance that the SEC will approve the Sol ETF this year. Financial Watchdog recognizes the 19B-4 form. The SEC also presumably considers Sol as a product. The potential for crypto-based ETFs has increased in 2025 after the appointment of procrypt candidate Paul Atkins as the new SEC head.
The launch of ETFs could lead to a surge in investment in Solana (SOL) facilities. Bitcoin (BTC) has peaked multiple times after the SEC approved the 11-spot BTC ETF last year. A similar pattern may appear on SOL. Institutional inflows are a key driver of asset prices. Institutional money can also provide stability over the price of Sol.
ETF approvals can also lead to a surge in investor trust. Retail players may also increase SOL exposure. When investors' trust grows, Sol can witness incredible growth. Such a scenario could drive Sol's price above $500.
2. Upgrading the fireman
The Firedancer upgrade is intended to significantly improve the scalability of your Solana network. This update increases transactions per second on SOL networks to over 1 million. To give you some perspective, Ethereum Network can process around 15 transactions per second. If a SOL network is able to successfully process more than one million transactions per second, it could become the global standard for cryptographic transfers.
Firedancer updates also aim to reduce transaction fees. Lower rates and increased scalability can lead to a large-scale adoption phase of SOL. Such developments can lead to significant price gatherings of assets. Sol could easily infringe the $500 mark under these conditions.
SOLs could see demand surges for cross-border remittance purposes. Sol Network could potentially replace Fiat Currency Transfer Systems like Swift.
3. Global crypto adoption and market conditions
The cryptocurrency market is expected to grow at an unprecedented pace over the next few years. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) believes Bitcoin (BTC) will go this cycle between $500,000 and $1 million. CZ isn't the only one who believes BTC will soon reach $1 million. Ark Invest CEO Catie Wood believes BTC will ultimately reach the $1 million mark. Several analysts expect BTC to reach unprecedented levels by the end of the decade. Solana (Sol) and other cryptocurrencies will benefit greatly from BTC reaching $1 million.
The crypto sector has also experienced considerable adoption over the past few years. This adoption curve is expected to increase only in the coming years. More and more investors are exposed to cryptocurrency. Sol could play a key role in increasing worship of cryptography globally.
The US currently has a custody administration. Many people have predicted generous regulations under the leadership of President Trump. Over the next few years, there may be more crypto-based initiatives in the US. The environment can quickly set the stage for Solana (Sol) to achieve the $500 mark.
