As the broader crypto market moved sideways in February 2026 amid global uncertainty, one ecosystem seemed to be on a different path.
New data from DeFi Dev Corp. (DFDV) shows that Solana [SOL] processed more than 3.4 billion transactions in February, an increase of 11% compared to January.
This is remarkable because large networks such as Ethereum are active during the same period [ETH] and Bitcoin [BTC] saw activity slow as market sentiment weakened.
How do other chains perform?
Next behind Solana is the second largest network, BNB Chain, which handled approximately 424 million transactions.
This means that Solana handled approximately eight times more activity than its nearest competitor, dwarfing the on-chain activity of other networks.
Source:
DeFi Dev Corp./X
The data also reveals a major trend within the Ethereum ecosystem, with Ethereum’s main network recording just 62 million transactions, pushing it to the bottom of the list.
Is Ethereum in trouble?
Although Ethereum’s main network saw significantly fewer transactions, this does not mean that the ecosystem as a whole is in decline.
Instead, much of the activity has moved to Layer-2 networks, which offer lower costs and faster transactions.
For example, Base, the Layer-2 network powered by Coinbase, processed 316 million transactions, showing strong retail activity. Meanwhile, Arbitrum registered 123 million, and Optimism 68 million, and usage remained stable.
This suggests that Ethereum’s biggest competitor may not be another Layer-1 chain. Instead, its own scale networks are gradually absorbing most of the activity, although even these networks still lag far behind Solana’s transaction volume.
Solana is witnessing a strong institutional momentum
In addition to networking activities, Solana also saw strong support from institutional investors.
Since their launch, Spot Solana ETFs have done just that attracted According to data from Farside Investors, net inflows are around $950 million, with inflows largely shrinking.
Meanwhile, on the price front, SOL also witnessed a monthly move, like many assets that struggled to find direction in February reject of more than 12%, but at the time of writing the price was trading around $90.09 and rose by 7.46% within 24 hours.
Furthermore, this coincided with AMBCrypto’s report that Solana held ~53% of the USDC supply worth $15.34 billion, making it one of the largest hubs for stablecoin activity.
What does the data say?
According to Santiment data, Solana’s net realized profit/loss remained largely negative at the end of January and February, with most bars turning red. This indicates that many holders sold their tokens at a loss when prices fell.
Source: Glassnode
Additionally, a major spike in early February shows losses of nearly $1.3 billion, indicating a wave of panic selling as the SOL fell sharply from around $140 to less than $90.
Since then, the size of the loss bars has gradually decreased, indicating that selling pressure is easing as the price stabilizes between $80 and $90.
This trend suggests that a large part of the forced sales have already taken place, with the market having entered a more stable phase.
But despite the strong numbers, an important question remains: can this momentum continue in the coming months, or will market conditions slow it down?
Final summary
- By processing 3.4 billion transactions in one month, Solana has a large lead over competing blockchains in raw activity.
- Realized loss data shows that much of the panic selling has already occurred, with selling pressure gradually easing as the price stabilizes.