Solana Rally Draws Attention, Prompting Profit-Taking in Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Cardano

Ethereum Surges Above $3,770 as Market Rotates Toward DeFi and Solana

Ethereum (ETH) climbed past $3,770 on Monday, extending a multi-day rally as capital continues to rotate out of bitcoin (BTC) and into high-beta altcoins and decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens. The move highlights growing investor interest in segments of the market that have lagged behind bitcoin’s recent rally.

ETH’s recent gains come as bitcoin stabilizes just above $117,400. While BTC has held ground, its dominance has started to slip—opening the door for altcoins like Solana (SOL), which jumped 8% to reach $203, its highest level since March. SOL’s breakout was driven by momentum around Jito’s launch of the Block Assembly Marketplace (BAM), a new initiative to improve block sequencing on the network.

Meanwhile, DeFi tokens are also attracting capital. Uniswap (UNI) and Aave (AAVE) are up 20%–30% over the past week, buoyed by growing interest in decentralized applications and favorable signals from pending U.S. crypto legislation, including the GENIUS Act.

“Ethereum is seeing clear tailwinds from sector rotation,” said Jeff Mei, COO of BTSE. “The strong bid for ETH is driven by both institutional flows and anticipation of further upside as ETH ETFs continue to see steady inflows.”

ETH exchange-traded products have seen rising demand since their debut, supporting broader market sentiment. Strategists believe Ethereum could follow bitcoin’s trajectory from earlier this year, with some targeting ETH’s all-time high of $4,870 as a medium-term objective.

“The setup favors ETH outperformance,” said Nassar Al Achkar, Chief Strategy Officer at CoinW. “With capital rotating into altcoins, Ethereum appears well-positioned to take the lead.”

Broader macro conditions are also supportive. Bond yields remain elevated, but risk sentiment has improved as inflation expectations creep higher and financial conditions remain loose. This has encouraged more aggressive positioning across crypto markets.

“We’re entering a new phase of the reflation trade,” said Augustine Fan, Head of Insights at SignalPlus. “Crypto, particularly ETH and SOL, are benefiting from this shift in positioning.”

Despite some profit-taking in tokens like XRP, DOGE, ADA, and BNB, the overall market tone remains constructive. Ethereum and Solana are now leading the charge in what many analysts believe could be the next phase of the crypto bull cycle.