Solana Holds at $127 Amid Whale Accumulation and Infrastructure Upgrades: Can SOL Reach $162 in January?

Solana (SOL) is currently trading at $127, which is up 1.8% in the last 24 hours. Whale accumulation tendencies and technical improvements

Solana Holds at $127 Amid Whale Accumulation and Infrastructure Upgrades: Can SOL Reach $162 by Month's End?

Quick overview

  • Solana is currently trading at $127, reflecting a 1.8% increase in the last 24 hours amid whale accumulation and technical improvements.
  • Despite a 46% drop in value over the past three months, significant whale activity suggests confidence in a potential price rebound.
  • Technical indicators show mixed signals for Solana, with a cautiously positive outlook and a current trading range indicating market consolidation.
  • Infrastructure upgrades, including the Firedancer validator client, aim to enhance Solana's performance and attract institutional finance.

Solana SOL/USD is currently trading at $127, which is up 1.8% in the last 24 hours. Whale accumulation tendencies and technical improvements are putting the network in a good position for a possible rebound, even though it has been volatile lately.

Solana Holds at $127 Amid Whale Accumulation and Infrastructure Upgrades: Can SOL Reach $162 by Month's End?
Solana price analysis

Solana Whale Accumulation Drives New Year Trading Activity

As blockchain analytics company Santiment stated that whale acquisition of SOL-related coins was the #1 social trend on New Year’s Day, cryptocurrency markets entered 2026 with a renewed attention on Solana. According to the statistics, significant wallets have bought 10 or more SOL several times for several Solana-linked assets. The behavioral heuristic scores are about 70%, which means that investors are somewhat but steadily confident.

This trend of accumulation is happening even though Solana’s value has dropped by almost 46% in the last three months. This suggests that big holders are expecting the price to go back up. The market caps of these assets are very different, but there is still a lot of liquidity, which means that institutional investors and high-net-worth people are still interested in them and are getting ready for possible market changes.

SOL/USD Technical Analysis: Mixed Signals with Upside Potential

From a technical point of view, Solana looks cautiously positive. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is now at 40.53, which is close to the point of being oversold. In the past, this has meant that there may be good buying opportunities. The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator shows a bullish crossover with a histogram value of 0.86, which means that the market is gaining strength and moving up.

The Average Directional Index (ADX) is at 32.96, which shows that there is a strong trend, and the Average True Range (ATR) is at 8.55, which shows that the market is somewhat volatile. Bollinger Bands analysis shows that the price is trading closer to the lower band, which is a technical pattern that many people regard as a possible entry point for buyers looking for a good deal.

SOL reached a 52-week high of $294.33 earlier this year, but it has since dropped 26.10% from that high. The current trading range of $123.07 to $127.24 over the past 24 hours implies that the market is consolidating before a possible breakout. The monthly objective of $162.32 would be a 27.8% gain from current levels.

SOL/USD

 

Infrastructure Upgrades Reshape Solana’s Network Performance

Solana’s technological progress keeps going. The Firedancer validator client is now working on the mainnet after being tested for more than 100 days. Jump Crypto built Firedancer, which can handle up to 1 million transactions per second in the best conditions. This is a big boost over the current infrastructure’s performance.

At the moment, two validators run the full Firedancer client, while about 165 validators, or 26% of the total stake, run “Frankendancer,” a hybrid version of the existing Agave client. The Alpenglow consensus improvement, which is slated to be out in the first quarter of 2026, will make the network more stable and lower block finality to about 150 milliseconds.

These improvements to the infrastructure are meant to make Solana a legitimate platform for institutional finance, not just a meme coin. Experts in the field say that predictable execution and lower latency will be very important for getting Web2 financial businesses on board and for supporting advanced trading apps like AI-native trading agents and on-chain perpetual futures.

Solana Price Forecasts Range from Conservative to Bullish

Market analysts think that Solana’s price could go up or down in a number of ways over time. The most immediate goal of $162.32 by the end of the month is only a small 27.8% rise from where it is now. Quarterly projections are around $213.60, which shows that people expect the recovery to keep going.

Looking ahead, yearly estimates say that SOL may sell for about $177.14 by the end of 2026. Three-year estimates say it could be worth $231.18, and five-year estimates say it could be worth $285.22. These forecasts are based on the assumption that planned enhancements will be effective, that more institutions will start using them, and that there will be a bigger movement toward making money in ways other than memecoins.

But analysts say that there are still big risks on the downside. Changes to the protocol make chain halts more likely, which could bring back criticism of Solana’s previous outages. Also, not being able to get big Web2 and financial companies to use it, many of which are still testing Ethereum Virtual Machine-based networks, could limit growth even if performance advantages stay the same.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR See More
Arslan Butt
Lead Markets Analyst – Multi-Asset (FX, Commodities, Crypto)
Arslan Butt serves as the Lead Commodities and Indices Analyst, bringing a wealth of expertise to the field. With an MBA in Behavioral Finance and active progress towards a Ph.D., Arslan possesses a deep understanding of market dynamics. His professional journey includes a significant role as a senior analyst at a leading brokerage firm, complementing his extensive experience as a market analyst and day trader. Adept in educating others, Arslan has a commendable track record as an instructor and public speaker. His incisive analyses, particularly within the realms of cryptocurrency and forex markets, are showcased across esteemed financial publications such as ForexCrunch, InsideBitcoins, and EconomyWatch, solidifying his reputation in the financial community.

Related Articles

HFM

Pu Prime

XM

Best Forex Brokers