Solana Outperforms Bitcoin as Cryptocurrency Market Breaks Records Following Donald Trump's Confirmation as the 45th President of the United States

Although the main focus remains on Bitcoin, which is approaching $90,000, other altcoins are performing even better. Solana, for example, has outperformed Bitcoin, delivering a return of over 36 per cent in the last week.

The cryptocurrency market is surging following Donald Trump's confirmation as the 47th President of the United States.

While the main focus is on Bitcoin, which is approaching $90,000, other altcoins are outperforming the flagship digital asset. Solana, for example, has delivered a return of over 36 per cent in the last week.

Here's a closer look at Solana's performance and the factors driving it.

Solana Surges Past $200 as Crypto Market booms

Solana is currently the fourth largest token, with over $102.5 billion in market cap. As the market rallied this week, Solana surged past the $200 price point, indicating potential for further increases.

Solana's prices are certainly benefitting from the positive market sentiment, which is largely attributed to Trump's victory. However, there are other factors at play as well.

Solana, the ‘Ethereum Killer’

Launched in 2020, Solana operates on a proof-of-stake protocol, predating Ethereum's switch from proof-of-work. The Solana blockchain is designed to host decentralised applications and has gained significant attention. Due to its efficiency, it has sometimes been called an “Ethereum killer.”

While Solana is only a quarter of the size of Ethereum, the only cryptocurrency between these two in size is Tether, a stablecoin. Thus, Solana is one of the most influential cryptocurrencies in the market.

Trump's Endorsement Boosting Crypto

One major factor behind the latest crypto rally is Donald Trump's endorsement of cryptocurrencies. President-elect Trump attended multiple Bitcoin conferences during his campaign and announced he would become the first “Bitcoin President.”

With Trump's endorsement, the crypto industry anticipates deregulation over the next four years. The Securities and Exchange Commission's Chair, Gary Gensler, who engaged in several high-profile conflicts with crypto companies, is also expected to be replaced soon.

Solana ETF Listing Next?

One of the most promising developments for Solana is the possibility of a spot Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) being listed on US exchanges.

Last July, Cboe officially applied to the SEC for the listing of Solana ETFs by two issuers, VanEck and 21Shares, who also submitted S-1 forms with the regulator.

While the US regulator has not yet taken action on the spot Solana ETF, a Trump-appointed, crypto-friendly SEC chief replacing Gensler may approve the instrument.

Notably, the SEC did approve the listing and trading of spot Bitcoin ETFs on US exchanges last January, followed by the approval of Ether ETFs. While such ETFs are already traded on the stock exchanges of several other countries, the US listing, due to the size of the market, provided a significant boost.