Key Takeaways
What triggered Solana’s latest whale movement?
A long-term holder who received 222,000 SOL from Solana five years ago transferred 200,000 SOL [$40 million] to Coinbase Prime.
Why is this transfer significant?
The move came just a day after BSOL recorded $56 million in opening-day trading, the largest ETF debut of 2025.
A long-term Solana holder has moved 200,000 SOL, worth about $40 million for the first time since 2020, to Coinbase Prime.
The move comes just one day after Bitwise’s Solana ETF [BSOL] posted the strongest ETF launch of 2025 with $56 million in first-day trading volume.
On-chain data shows that the whale received 222,000 SOL from Solana’s company wallet five years ago, when the token was trading at just $1.68.
The address, now linked to a Solana staking account, still holds around 92,824 SOL valued at $18 million, according to Arkham Intelligence.
The transfer, its first major movement in years, coincides with rising institutional interest in Solana following the debut of the Bitwise BSOL ETF on 28 October, and Grayscale’s GSOL product on 29 October.
Solana ETF demand meets whale supply
The timing of the $40 million transfer has sparked speculation over whether the whale is taking profit or supplying liquidity for institutional trading desks.
Coinbase Prime, which primarily serves funds and high-net-worth clients, often acts as a bridge between large crypto holders and institutional market makers.
With BSOL’s record-breaking debut and GSOL’s launch today, the whale could be positioning to capture ETF-related demand as Solana exposure becomes more accessible to traditional investors.
Report shows BSOL’s $56 million opening volume surpassed every ETF launch this year, including those tied to Bitcoin and Ethereum derivatives.
The milestone solidified Solana’s place as the leading altcoin for institutional inflows in 2025.
Price steady despite whale move
Despite the large transfer, Solana’s price held firm around $195, rising 0.48% on the day. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is currently near 47, indicating balanced momentum as traders weigh ETF inflows against potential whale selling.
Source: TradingView
On TradingView, SOL’s chart shows consolidation between $190 and $200, suggesting investors are not rushing to sell despite the potential overhang of whale supply.
Institutional rotation in motion
The move underscores a broader shift in the Solana market. With institutional liquidity growing and major funds seeking alternative Layer-1 exposure, whales may now be redistributing tokens accumulated during Solana’s early development phase.
Whether this marks the beginning of a rotation from long-term holders to institutional buyers remains to be seen.
However, with ETF demand surging and price stability holding, Solana’s market now appears more institutionally driven than ever before.