Solana's SOL Surges to Record High Above $260

The token of late has benefitted from multiple catalysts, including meme coin action, growing DeFi activity on the Solana network and the coming crypto-friendly presidential administration.

Surging to a record high on Thursday, Solana's (CRYPTO: SOL) token continued its remarkable comeback from a crypto winter price collapse of more than 95%.

Two years after the downfall of Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto empire FTX and Alameda Research, both of which were prominent backers of the Solana ecosystem, SOL was trading just above $263 at press time. The token hit an all-time high of $362 in October 2021, before plummeting to as low as $8 late in 2022.

The token's new record comes amid a broader meme coin trading action and growing decentralized finance (DeFi) activity on the Solana network. The network has also seen increasing institutional interest, with the odds of a U.S.-based spot Solana ETF improving after the election of crypto-friendly Donald Trump two weeks ago.

On Thursday, crypto foe and SEC Chairman Gary Gensler announced his intention to fully resign from the commission on Jan. 20 as Trump takes office. Earlier today, Fox News reported on constructive talks between the SEC and possible SOL ETF issuers.

To the surprise of many, the SEC approved a Bitcoin futures ETF in October 2021, despite Gensler and the commission delaying approval for a spot ETF multiple times.

The approval of a Bitcoin futures ETF was seen as a positive development for cryptocurrencies, as it marked the first time that the SEC had approved an ETF directly linked to the performance of a digital asset.

However, Gensler and the SEC have faced criticism for their handling of cryptocurrencies, with some accusing the commission of being too slow to regulate the industry and others arguing that the SEC is overstepping its authority.

In December 2022, Gensler said that he would leave the SEC if he were not confirmed by the Senate for a second term.