Traders have significantly reduced their bets on Solana. In May, the open interest in SOL futures dropped by almost a third, heightening concerns about further price declines. While Bitcoin and some major altcoins are holding key levels, Solana remains under pressure and is once again approaching the lower boundary of its multi-month range.
According to the derivatives market, open interest in SOL futures fell from $2.75 billion in mid-May to $1.9 billion by the end of the month. Such a decline usually indicates that participants are closing positions and prefer to reduce risk rather than increasing bets on growth or decline.
Speculators Leave the Market
The peculiarity of the current situation is that there is still no massive imbalance between buyers and sellers. Funding rates for perpetual contracts remain near neutral values, indicating no clear dominance of bulls or bears.
However, other statistics look less optimistic. The cumulative delta of futures volumes backed by stablecoins has dropped to its lowest levels since the beginning of the year. This means that in recent weeks, sellers have been noticeably more active than buyers.
In other words, some traders have chosen to leave the market rather than wait for a recovery in quotes.
Spot Market Appears More Resilient
BTC price, cumulative spot and futures CVD compensation
At the same time, the situation on the spot market is noticeably different from what is happening in derivatives. Since March, the cumulative delta of volumes on spot platforms has grown to about $350 million. This indicates that real buying continues even amid worsening sentiment among speculators.
Additional support is provided by exchange-traded funds based on Solana. In May, net inflows into spot SOL ETFs reached $113 million. This is the best monthly result for such products since the beginning of the year.
This creates an interesting picture. Short-term traders are reducing leverage and leaving the market, while long-term investors continue to gradually accumulate the asset.
$80 Level Remains Key
From a technical standpoint, Solana has been trading within a range between $80 and $95 for several months.
After falling more than 40% in the first quarter, the price has repeatedly tested the lower boundary of this corridor. Now SOL is once again near the $80 mark after another unsuccessful attempt to hold above resistance.
As long as the level holds, the market retains a chance to return to the upper part of the range. However, any decisive move lower could sharply change the situation.
Why Traders Are Watching the $68 Mark
If support around $80 is lost, participants’ attention will quickly shift to the yearly low around $68.
A large volume of liquidity is concentrated there. According to liquidation maps, more than $800 million in long positions with leverage are located near this zone.
Such areas often become a magnet for price during corrections. If sellers can push the market below current levels, the $68 area may become the next target.
Some analysts are already calling Solana one of the weakest coins among major cryptocurrencies. In their view, the downward structure has persisted since last fall, and there are virtually no significant support levels between $80 and $68.
ETFs Help but Have Not Changed the Trend Yet
Despite steady demand from funds and buyers in the spot market, this is still not enough for a full reversal.
Investors remain cautious about risky assets amid uncertainty around Fed policy, high interest rates, and declining activity in the altcoin market. In such conditions, capital is more often directed into Bitcoin or remains in stablecoins.
For Solana, this means that even positive ETF data currently acts more as a support factor than as a driver of new growth.
What Comes Next?
The coming weeks could be decisive for Solana. On the one hand, the market continues to receive inflows through ETFs, and spot buyers maintain interest in the asset. On the other hand, a 30% drop in open interest shows that speculators are losing confidence in a quick recovery.
For now, the $80 mark remains the main line of defense for buyers. If it holds, SOL may once again attempt to return to the $90–95 range. If selling pressure intensifies, the market will quickly shift its focus to the area around $68, where the next major liquidity level is located.
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