Solana Price Falls Below $120 as Selling Pressure Builds Across Crypto
Solana’s price remained under pressure on Wednesday, extending recent losses as the broader crypto market struggled to stabilize.
SOL was trading around $118 at the time of writing, down more than 2% on the day and roughly 12% over the past week, as selling pressure continued to build across major altcoins.
- Solana remains under pressure near $118 as Bitcoin’s decline drags altcoins lower.
- More than $32 million in SOL long liquidations signal continued downside risk.
- The court decision is procedural, not a verdict, and extreme crash claims remain speculative.
This weakness comes amid a broader market downturn led by Bitcoin. As BTC slipped further below key support levels, risk appetite faded across the market, with altcoins following closely. Solana, already showing signs of technical exhaustion, moved lower alongside the wider sector as traders reduced exposure.
Liquidations Surge as Bulls Get Caught Offside
Derivatives data highlights the intensity of the recent move. Over the past 24 hours, Solana-related liquidations totaled approximately $32.6 million. Long positions accounted for the majority of that figure, at around $26.4 million, while short liquidations stood near $6.2 million. The imbalance suggests that many traders were positioned for a rebound that failed to materialize as downside momentum accelerated.
From a technical standpoint, SOL continues to trade within a declining structure on the 4-hour chart. The RSI remains depressed in the low-to-mid 30s, pointing to oversold conditions but offering limited confirmation of a sustained recovery. At the same time, MACD remains firmly in negative territory, reinforcing the prevailing bearish trend.
Legal Case Raises Questions, But No Verdict Has Been Reached
Beyond price action, sentiment around Solana has been shaken by renewed attention on a U.S. class-action lawsuit involving PumpFun, Solana Labs, and several Solana-linked entities. A federal court recently allowed a second amended complaint to proceed, a development that sparked concern across social media and triggered increasingly dire price predictions from some traders.
However, legal experts have pushed back against interpretations suggesting that the ruling represents a judgment against Solana or its ecosystem. According to attorney Ariel Givner, whose comments were shared on December 17, the court’s decision does not amount to a finding of liability or wrongdoing. Instead, it simply grants plaintiffs permission to move forward with their allegations.
Givner stressed that this is a procedural step, not a verdict, and that the discovery phase will now test whether there is evidence to support claims of insider advantages and structural bias in token launches. She also noted that while allegations of priority access are serious, they remain unproven, and pointed out that the dismissal of Jito Labs and related parties from the case suggests some claims may already be losing traction.
Claims Focus on Infrastructure, Not Just Applications
The lawsuit itself alleges that certain participants benefited from structural advantages during memecoin launches, potentially tied to transaction ordering and validator behavior. Importantly, the complaint attempts to link these issues not just to individual applications, but to Solana’s underlying infrastructure – a distinction that has fueled market anxiety.
That said, legal observers caution that such claims face a high bar. Allowing a complaint to proceed does not imply the court agrees with the allegations, only that they warrant examination through discovery.
ETF Flows Show Cautious Institutional Interest
Institutional data offers a more measured perspective. On December 17, Solana-linked exchange-traded products recorded modest net inflows of around $11 million. While products such as Bitwise’s BSOL and Fidelity’s FSOL saw small gains, flows remain uneven and far from signaling strong conviction buying.
The limited scale of these inflows suggests that institutions are not reacting to headlines with panic, but neither are they aggressively stepping in to absorb selling pressure.
Market Fear Meets Speculation
Some commentators have warned that legal uncertainty could eventually lead to extreme downside scenarios for SOL, including price targets as low as $5. However, such projections remain highly speculative and are not supported by any court ruling or regulatory action at this stage.
For now, Solana’s decline appears driven by a combination of broader market weakness, leverage unwinding, and heightened sensitivity to negative headlines. While legal proceedings may weigh on sentiment in the short term, the case remains unresolved, and its ultimate impact on Solana’s long-term outlook is still uncertain.
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Alex is an experienced financial journalist and cryptocurrency enthusiast. With over 8 years of experience covering the crypto, blockchain, and fintech industries, he is well-versed in the complex and ever-evolving world of digital assets. His insightful and thought-provoking articles provide readers with a clear picture of the latest developments and trends in the market. His approach allows him to break down complex ideas into accessible and in-depth content. Follow his publications to stay up to date with the most important trends and topics.
