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Is Solana Dying? DEX Trading Volume Drops 95% as SOL Price Continues to Fall

Published 16 December 2025
Kurt Robson
Authors
Edited by Ryan James
Key Takeaways
  • Participation on Solana-based decentralized exchanges has fallen significantly.
  • Despite declining on-chain activity, Solana continues to attract investment and infrastructure development.
  • SOL’s price remains at a crossroads amid a significant drop.

Solana’s network activity has declined sharply in recent months, with trading volume on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) falling by approximately 95%.

The downturn comes as the blockchain’s native token remains under pressure, despite continued inflows from institutional investment and expansion.

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Network Participation Plummets

On-chain data indicates a significant contraction in trading activity on Solana-based decentralized exchanges.

According to blockchain analytics, the total value of Solana spot DEX trading volume has declined by 95% to $1.7 billion from its peak of $38.4 billion in January.

The number of active addresses interacting with Solana-based decentralized exchanges fell to approximately 2.85 million during the week of Dec. 8–14, marking the lowest level in a year.

This represents a sharp drop from January, when active addresses peaked at around 24 million.

Meanwhile, Solana application revenue has plummeted a whopping 96% from $40.6 million to under $1.4 million.

Added Investment

The decline in network activity contrasts with continued investment and infrastructure development across the Solana ecosystem.

At the Solana Breakpoint 2025 conference last week, Coinbase announced it would expand access to Solana-based tokens by integrating them directly into its platform.

Speaking at the event, Andrew, a protocol specialist at Coinbase, said, “We think those markets should be accessible to all of our users.”

The integration enables users to trade Solana-based tokens through Coinbase’s standard interface, eliminating the need for additional steps.

“On the surface it looks the same as existing centralized trading, but on the backend all functions operate on-chain,” engineer Sabs Sachdeva added.

Solana Price Action: Where to Next?

Solana’s price remains under pressure as technical indicators continue to signal downside risk, despite recent attempts at stabilization.

At the time of reporting, SOL was trading at around $132, down nearly 4% over the past seven days.

According to analyst Valdrin Tahiri, SOL has been trading within an ascending parallel channel since Nov. 21, a structure that often reflects corrective price action rather than a sustainable uptrend.

“The SOL price has traded inside an ascending parallel channel since Nov. 21,” Tahiri said, adding that “these channels usually contain corrective movements, so an eventual breakdown is likely.”

Tahiri noted that SOL is currently trading in the lower portion of the channel, which increases the probability of a downside move.

SOL/USDT Daily Chart Credit: Valdrin Tahiri/TradingView

“Additionally, the SOL price trades in the channel’s lower portion, making a breakdown more likely,” he explained.

Beyond the broader channel structure, Tahiri pointed to a bearish short-term pattern reinforcing the negative outlook.

“Furthermore, there is a short-term descending triangle in place, confirming the bearish trend,” he said.

Tahiri warned that a confirmed breakdown below key support levels could trigger a sharp decline.

“Once the SOL price closes below support, it could quickly plummet 16% to the next support at $106,” he added.

Kurt Robson

Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.

He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.

Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.

At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.

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