$SOL-USD

Joseph Chalom, SharpLink CEO and ex-BlackRock executive, calls Bitcoin an 'exit asset' and Ethereum 'the new rails' for finance, citing its potential to integrate stablecoins and DeFi. Bitwise's research shows institutions hold Bitcoin as a primary asset but view Ethereum and Solana as speculative. Bitcoin ETFs saw $2.4B inflows last week, while Ethereum ETFs had $690M.

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw $2.4 billion in net inflows last week, their largest since October 2025, turning their 2026 net flows positive. Ether ETFs also reversed prior outflows with $690 million in inflows. BlackRock's IBIT led with $1.2 billion in inflows, followed by Fidelity's FBTC with $701.7 million. Analysts attribute the surge to Treasury buybacks. Cumulative net inflows for bitcoin ETFs since launch now stand at $57.6 billion.

Solana validators approved a proposal to double the network's disinflation rate, reducing SOL issuance by 18.9 million over six years. The vote passed with 67.0% support, influenced by Kraken and Galaxy Digital. SOL is currently trading at $117, up 11% this week. The change will lower staking yields but has no immediate impact on supply.

Solana (SOL) reached $122, its highest since January, supported by six consecutive days of Spot ETF inflows totaling $235.8 million. Key inflows came from Bitwise and Grayscale. Buying pressure, indicated by positive Delta and negative exchange netflow, helped SOL overcome resistance. Holding above $120 is crucial for further gains toward $130.

Solana's developer network migrated to Alpenglow, a new consensus protocol designed to reduce transaction finality time from 12.8 seconds to 100-150 milliseconds. The upgrade replaces TowerBFT with Votor, developed with ETH Zurich, and includes a 20+20 fault-tolerance model. Alpenglow is live on devnet and testnet but not yet on mainnet-beta. Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko highlighted the significance of the upgrade.

Solana's Alpenglow upgrade is now active on devnet and testnet, aiming to reduce transaction finality from 12.8 seconds to 150 milliseconds. The upgrade changes how validators finalize blocks, but mainnet activation is not yet scheduled. Developers can test the system on devnet, while block-data services must adapt to changes in transaction records.

Solana is testing the Alpenglow upgrade, which could reduce transaction finality time from 12.8 seconds to 150 milliseconds. The upgrade changes how validators confirm transactions, not the execution layer. If successful, it could enhance payment processing and exchange workflows. The upgrade is currently on the devnet, with no mainnet launch date set.

NFT sales rose 57.17% to $55.51M in the week ending Sep. 26, per CryptoSlam. Ethereum led with $30.33M in sales, up 113.52%. CryptoPunks ranked first among collections with $8.24M in sales. Bitcoin and Ethereum prices also increased, trading near $83,914 and $2,686, respectively. The total crypto market cap was near $2.97T, according to CoinGecko.

Solana's Alpenglow upgrade, aiming to reduce transaction settlement time to 150 milliseconds from 12.8 seconds, is now active on its devnet and testnet. The upgrade changes validator agreement processes and may reduce reported transaction totals. Mainnet launch date and sustained speed under live conditions are not yet confirmed.

Solana launched the Alpenglow Testnet, targeting 150ms finality, and is integrating Bitcoin functionalities to enhance its ecosystem. According to the company, this could attract more users and developers, potentially boosting its DApp revenue leadership. Despite high blockchain activity, Solana's price has lagged behind other major cryptocurrencies, but recent developments may shift investor sentiment.