Anticipation surrounding a potential exchange-traded fund (ETF) product and a surge in transactional activity have propelled Solana’s SOL tokens to significant gains, according to various market analysts.

Over the past week, Solana has outperformed major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), with SOL’s price climbing more than 18% to exceed $180 on Monday morning, marking a new three-month peak.

Analysts attribute Solana’s rise to an increase in trading activity on Solana-based applications, which has strengthened the token’s fundamentals. “The Solana ecosystem is flourishing, evidenced by heightened DEX activity, an increase in daily active users, and greater fee accrual to the network,” remarked Pat Doyle, a blockchain researcher at Amberdata. “These robust fundamentals, alongside positive market sentiment, are driving SOL forward.”

Read more: VanEck’s Bold Move: Solana ETF Filing Ignites 8% Surge in SOL Token

Data from DefiLlama reveals a substantial increase in the total value locked (TVL) on the Solana network, which has surged over 25% in the past month, surpassing $5.28 billion—levels not seen since April 2022. The network has consistently generated at least $1.5 million daily since June, with on-chain trading volumes exceeding $2 billion each day over the past week.

Solana’s appeal lies in its rapid transaction settlement and low fees, making it a favorite for meme coin trading frenzies throughout the past year. In contrast, Ethereum, the largest blockchain by TVL with $60 billion, reported lower volumes at $1.7 billion but higher fees at $3 million, reflecting its higher user costs.

Rennick Palley, founding partner at crypto venture fund Stratos, highlighted that easing regulatory policies are enhancing Solana’s attractiveness among institutional investors. “The recent surge is due to improving market sentiment and increasing confidence that Solana and its ecosystem tokens won’t be classified as securities under the Trump administration, given Donald Trump’s pro-crypto stance in his pre-election speeches,” he noted. “Additionally, the upcoming launch of the ETH ETF is boosting optimism—SOL seems poised to be the next token with an ETF, which, considering its relatively small market size and robust price performance, would be extremely bullish.”

In early July, the Cboe filed 19b-4 submissions with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to list VanEck’s and 21Shares’ prospective spot Solana ETFs, originally submitted in late June.

As of Monday morning in Europe, SOL was trading near $180, showing a 3.5% increase over the previous 24 hours, significantly outpacing the broader CoinDesk 20’s 1.3% rise.