Matt Hougan of Bitwise: Why Solana Could Be the Next Wall Street

Bitwise CIO Matthew Hougan Calls Solana ‘the New Wall Street’

Solana is attracting renewed attention as a leading blockchain platform, with Bitwise CIO Matthew Hougan dubbing it “the new Wall Street” due to its speed, high throughput, and near-instant finality.

Speaking with Solana Labs’ Akshay Rajan on Oct. 2, Hougan highlighted that global financial leaders—including the SEC, the Bank of England, and BlackRock’s CEO—are increasingly recognizing the transformative potential of stablecoins and tokenized markets. He noted that investors who understand these shifts see the scale of disruption blockchain technology could bring to payments and securities markets.

Hougan explained that as investors evaluate blockchain exposure, comparisons between platforms naturally follow. In his view, Solana’s settlement speed improvements—from 400 microseconds to 150 microseconds—combined with high throughput, make it “extraordinarily attractive.” He emphasized that these features appeal to participants used to trading environments where execution speed and latency are critical.

Framing Solana as “the new Wall Street,” Hougan predicts that the blockchain’s technical advantages will drive substantial capital flows as institutional and retail investors increasingly adopt the narrative.

SOL Technical Analysis
CoinDesk Research data shows that during the 23-hour session from Oct. 3 at 15:00 UTC to Oct. 4 at 14:00 UTC:

• SOL traded in a tight $8.40 range between $228.19 and $237.04, reflecting consolidation.
• The session high of $237.04 occurred at 16:00 UTC on Oct. 3, before selling pressure pushed the price toward $228–$229 support.
• Trading volume peaked at 3.29 million units early in the session and declined to 42,637 units by the close, suggesting waning participation.
• In the final 60 minutes (13:11–14:10 UTC, Oct. 4), SOL broke below $228–$229 support, falling from $229.84 to $228.94 (0.39%), confirming a bearish shift.
• An early rebound lifted the price briefly to $229.78 at 13:38 UTC, followed by renewed selling to $228.72.
• The breakdown coincided with a volume surge, with the busiest one-minute interval at 14:01 UTC seeing 18,011 units traded, indicating larger sellers were active and increasing the likelihood of continued downward momentum.

Hougan’s observations, alongside SOL’s price movements, underscore Solana’s appeal as a high-performance blockchain while signaling short-term caution amid consolidation and selling pressure.