Solana Price Drops 7% to $60 Amidst FTX Cold Wallet Transfers 

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Chimamanda U. Martha
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The price of Solana (SOL) has experienced a 7% decline over 24 hours. However, at the time of writing the fall is not so critical. The coin is around 1% down. The Solana price today is approximately $60 despite the recent market corrections that saw the price of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) rise to $42000 and $2200 respectively for the first time since last year.

According to CoinMarketCap data, the crypto asset, dubbed the Ethereum killer, saw its market capitalization reduce to $25.5 billion after hitting $26 billion on December 4 due to the price decline.

SOL Price Sees 7% Decline

In contrast to the recent price fluctuations, SOL has been on an upward trajectory since October, with the digital asset expected to break out of the psychologically crucial level of $65 after reaching $62. The price indicates a significant increase from the $23 it traded in August alongside other altcoins, which also experienced notable declines due to poor market conditions.

The token regained its sixth position among the top ten largest cryptocurrencies in the world by market capitalization. Analysts predicted that SOL could reach $100 by the end of the year once it breaks out of the $65 benchmark at the time.

However, the virtual asset has retraced back to $60, showing a massive 7% drop, and according to blockchain firm Lookonchain, an address associated with the FTX cold wallet, 4Axqyo…HswTAh unstaked a substantial amount of 1.5 million SOL, equivalent to approximately $90 million, on Tuesday, November 5 at 7:55 UTC+8.

The company said the entire unstaked assets were transferred to the address 3vxheE5…5mgkom. Lookonchain further revealed the recipient address later moved a total of 4.13 million SOL worth around $248.67 million to the American crypto exchange Coinbase.

1/ FTX-related address "4Axqyo…HswTAh" unstaked 1.5M $SOL($90M) 2 hours ago and transferred it to "3vxheE…5mgkom".

And we noticed that "3vxheE…5mgkom" deposited 4.13M $SOL($248.67M) to #Coinbase 11 hours ago. pic.twitter.com/pQRNDZCvgy

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) December 5, 2023

FTX Liquidates Crypto Holdings, Including SOL

Recall that before FTX officially filed for bankruptcy protection last year in November, the defunct exchange held $1.2 billion in SOL. However, after the bankruptcy court greenlighted the sale, the company recently embarked on a liquidation journey, selling its crypto holdings to repay its creditors.

In October, an address linked to the troubled exchange transferred $15 million worth of SOL to Binance and Coinbase. 

Blockchain security firm PeckShieldAlert said at the time that another cold wallet address belonging to the company also moved $2.5 million worth of other cryptocurrencies, such as $COMP and $RNDN, to Wintermute, a leading global algorithmic trading firm dealing in digital assets.

Meanwhile, despite the sell-offs, SOL investors remain resilient, continuing a bullish price rally for the crypto asset.

Analysts suggest a potential bullish scenario could materialize if the price breaks above $63.4, opening the possibility of a retest of the $65.3 resistance level.

In the event of a bullish breakthrough, market observers anticipate a potential ascent towards the $79.1 level. Conversely, a dip below the $59 level could signal a downward trajectory, testing the support level at $56.4.

Crypto analyst Ali Martinez has warned of a potential correction for SOL. He said the TD Sequential signals a sell on the SOL weekly chart, and the RSI is overbought. He further noted that a profit-taking surge could lead to a retracement to $47.6. However, to counter the bearish outlook, SOL needs a weekly close above $68.4, targeting $108.