Solana price consolidates below $200 as DEX activity cools amid crypto market crash

Solana price steadied below $200 as traders cautiously returned to the market even as on-chain activity appears to be cooling.

Solana traded around $196 at press time, up about 8% in the past 24 hours after falling to a weekly low of $173 during the Oct. 10 market crash. Despite this rebound, the token remains 14% lower for the week and 19% down over the past month, marking a 32% pullback from its January high near $293.

Trading activity has picked up slightly. Solana’s (SOL) spot volume reached $12 billion in the last 24 hours, up 14% from the previous day. Derivatives activity also rose, with futures volume up 36% to $32.4 billion and open interest up 6%, as per CoinGlass data.

This indicates that traders are gradually reopening positions and re-entering the market after the recent sell-off.

Solana DEX volume and TVL slide during market downturn

On-chain data paints a more cautious picture. According to DefiLlama data, Solana’s decentralized exchange volume has steadily declined since the crash, dropping from $8.37 billion on Oct. 10 to $6.43 billion on Oct. 11 and $5.84 billion on Oct. 12. Additionally, total value locked dropped from $12.5 billion to about $10 billion before rising to just over $11 billion. 

Despite declining DEX metrics, Solana’s stablecoin market capitalization has increased by 8% in the last week to $16.2 billion. This suggests that capital is sitting on the sidelines, waiting for clearer signals before being deployed.

Upcoming catalysts could shape Solana’s recovery

Several short-term developments may influence Solana’s price. Between Oct. 28 and Nov. 15, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will decide on a possible spot SOL ETF. Polymarket odds indicate that the ETF has a 90% chance of being approved. If the decision is favorable, institutional inflows of billions of dollars could follow, much like what happened to Ethereum following the approval of its ETF.

In addition, the Alpenglow upgrade, which is expected later this year, will enable faster on-chain trading by increasing transaction finality to about 150 milliseconds. Meanwhile, Jump Crypto’s Firedancer validator client, set for public testing in late October, aims to improve network reliability and attract fresh decentralized finance liquidity.

Solana price technical analysis

Solana remains in consolidation mode below the $200 resistance. The relative strength index at 43 indicates neutral momentum, while most short-term moving averages, between $210 and $220, act as resistance. 

While the 200- and 100-day moving averages sit lower and offer a longer-term support base around $186 and $198, a number of short-term moving averages are above the current price and serve as resistance in the $210–$220 band.

SOL may draw fresh buying toward earlier highs if it can maintain above $185–$190 and break through the mid-200s. If it fails to hold the $170–$180 area, sellers may test the next structural supports and force deeper consolidation in the weeks ahead.