One significant shift is happening in the crypto asset space: ETFs tied to Solana (SOL) are seeing increased inflows while those tied to Bitcoin (BTC) experience outflows, sparking conversation around whether Bitcoin may be losing liquidity to Solana. Our flow landscape shows this is happening. Initially CryptoSlate +2 and Phemex each listed two ETFs that track Solana.
Solana ETFs–primarily Bitwise SOL Staking ETF (BSOL) and Grayscale SOL ETF (GSOL) –accrued roughly $284 million in net creations during six consecutive trading days beginning October 28, while Bitcoin and Ethereum funds recorded large net outflows. According to CryptoSlate’s calculations, around $983 million flowed out, while only about $540 million came in.
One data set shows Bitcoin ETF products had lost nearly $1.7 billion since 2014, while Solana-based funds had steady positive flows. From CryptoSlate reporting, Solana ETFs generated approximately $90 million versus just $16 million for Bitcoin’s equivalent in one week. (Sources of this info come from Bitget).
What This Disconnect Indicates
This discrepancy begs the question, is capital shifting away from Bitcoin into Solana? Various factors play a part in this phenomenon:
New-product effect: Solana ETFs have recently been launched and may benefit from an initial surge of investor enthusiasm. CryptoSlate notes that any inflows that extend past their typical launch window may represent structural shifts rather than temporary spikes.
CryptoSlate Staking Yield Appeal: Solana has attracted considerable interest as an attractive differentiator over Bitcoin due to its native staking ecosystem and yield-generating potential (around 7 %).
Bitget’s Liquidity Mechanisms: Solana ETF creations may remove Solana SOL from circulation and limit available float, tightening secondary liquidity for Solana products while persistent outflows from Bitcoin-based products reduce BTC demand. As evidenced in CryptoSlate data, such moves could significantly tighten available liquidity on Solana assets while creating further pressure for secondary liquidity within SOL ETFs.
Does Solana appear to be “stealing” Bitcoin liquidity?
Answer: Not completely, but partially.” While data demonstrates an increasing institutional appetite for Solana, several caveats must be recognized:
Bitcoin remains dominant across multiple metrics: market capitalisation, adoption rate and infrastructure all dwarf Solana despite recent gains; Solana remains significantly smaller and less liquid globally than Bitcoin.
Solana ETF inflows may come from fresh capital rather than reallocation from Bitcoin; yet due to Bitcoin outflows, some form of partial rotation might occur.
CryptoSlate warns that sustained inflows over weeks rather than days are required for this trend to remain structural. Solana inflows may taper off once their novelty wears off or Bitcoin flows stabilize; should these happen, then Solana could return to status quo and the current narrative could fade back out again. For now though, the trend appears sustainable. To follow now: What CryptoSlateiterfuhrendenta Next on watch next.
Key indicators can help identify whether this event represents a temporary phenomenon or represents a lasting change:
At Solana ETFs, there have been steady weekly inflows beyond the initial launch surge.
Continued net outflows from Bitcoin ETFs, and whether they accumulate over time.
Changes to SOL/BTC ratio and on-chain metrics such as volume, staking participation and liquidity depth.
Institutional product issuers could expand altcoin ETF offerings beyond Bitcoin/Ethereum to Solana and others.
Final Thoughts
The recent outperformance of Solana-based ETFs is more than mere market noise; it signals that investors may be shifting away from Bitcoin in favour of alternatives that provide both staking returns and technical appeal. Though Solana may be drawing some investor interest and possibly siphoning away liquidity away from Bitcoin, its dominance remains undisturbed for now. For newcomers or portfolio strategists entering crypto space, closely monitoring how this dynamic develops is of vital importance: is this truly institutional rotation or simply temporary hype associated with new-product enthusiasm?
