Solana Price Surges on Tether Recovery Package

Solana's native token SOL has experienced a significant price increase to $90, driven primarily by Tether's decision to provide a recovery package for Drift Protocol, a key Solana-based decentralized exchange that was affected by a recent hack. The move is seen as a decisive step to contain systemic risk and protect user funds, with the market interpreting it as a strong indication of Solana's underlying strength.

The on-chain activity on Solana has been increasing, with significant inflows in SOL ETF products and total economic activity exceeding $1.1 trillion in Q1 2026. This indicates increased usage in DeFi, NFTs, and consumer-facing apps, and highlights that the ecosystem is not only surviving but also expanding despite individual protocols facing shocks.

The price of SOL has surged by around 5% in the last 24 hours, outpacing Bitcoin's roughly 1.5% move. The uptick in price is attributed to Tether's decision to lead a $150 million recovery package for Drift Protocol, with up to $127.5 million coming directly from the stablecoin issuer and the balance from ecosystem partners.