Solana Price Outperforms Bitcoin, Others as Cathie Wood Rates it Higher Than Ethereum

Key Takeaways

• Cathie Wood praised Solana’s performance this year, stating that it is “doing a really good job.”
• Wood believes that Solana’s faster transaction speeds and lower costs make it more attractive than Ethereum.
• Wood’s positive comments about Solana may have contributed to the cryptocurrency’s recent price spike.

The Solana blockchain’s native token, SOL, has been on an upward trajectory in 2023, experiencing a meteoric rise of over 400%, propelling it from an initial price of $7.63 to nearly $40.

This remarkable price movement has captured the attention of the investment community, sparking discussions and debates regarding the sustainability of such growth and the potential for future gains or corrections.

ARK CEO’s Comments Fuel Solana’s Surge to New Highs

Solana’s native token, SOL, has achieved fresh yearly highs, surging over 17%  to $64 the day after ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood commended the network for its efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

During an interview  on November 15, Wood characterized the Solana network as a crucial infrastructure component in the broader blockchain ecosystem, highlighting its commendable performance in recent market conditions. She specifically praised Solana for its speed and efficiency, positioning it as superior to the Ethereum network.

“Ether was faster and cheaper than Bitcoin in the day — that’s how we got Ether. Solana is even faster and cost-effective than Ether,” she stated .

Wood highlighted Ethereum and Solana as pivotal additions to the blockchain ecosystem, emphasizing their roles as essential infrastructure layers with the capacity for a broader range of real-world applications compared to Bitcoin.

Wood explained :

“The reason we have focused as much on Ether is that we think, that is the smart contract network, that is the decentralised finance network. Solana is doing a really good job. I mean if you look at Ether, [it] was faster and cheaper than Bitcoin in the day.”

“That’s that’s how we got Ether. Solana is even faster and cost effective than Ether. So you know, there are infrastructure plays we do believe Web 3 digital assets that’s that’s a big idea actually – digital assets with property rights, first time ever online that we’re seeing properties.”

Wood Advises Against Short-Term Focus on Bitcoin ETF Approval

In the midst of a general uptrend in the cryptocurrency market, Solana has demonstrated remarkable performance, surpassing the gains of other major cryptocurrencies.

Over the last month, Solana has surged by over 197%, significantly outpacing the 32% and 28% increases in Bitcoin and Ether, respectively, during the same period. Presently, Solana is trading at just over $66, as per data from TradingView.

Wood also commented  on the current market anticipation surrounding several pending spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) products. She emphasized the importance of staying focused on the fundamental significance of Bitcoin as “the money revolution” and cautioned against becoming overly fixated on short-term price movements.

Acknowledging the possibility of a “sell on the news” scenario, Wood noted  that there might be an event where investors’ anticipation of an approval exceeds the market demand for the actual event. This could result in a rapid selloff in the days following the anticipated news.

She said :

“We put out a Bitcoin monthly piece every month and you can see the health of the network using our on chain metrics. The health of the network is almost as good as it gets and it seems like this is a bull market. Sure we’ll have puts and takes. Nothing goes straight up, but I think this flight to quality.”

Wood added  she believes that Bitcoin will outperform in the long term, but the current exposure is diversified through equities.

There is a quest to identify the company poised to develop the pivotal digital wallet. According to her, the search includes assessing candidates such as Coinbase, Square with Cash App, Robin Hood in Latin America, MercadoLibre, or New Bank.