Solana’s $2.8B revenue outpaces Ethereum’s early growth: 21Shares

Solana generated $2.85 billion in revenue over the past year, according to a new report from 21Shares, driven by trading platform activity.

Between October 2024 and September 2025, Solana averaged about $240 million in monthly revenue, peaking at $616 million in January during the memecoin boom led by tokens like Official Trump (TRUMP). But even after the frenzy cooled, monthly revenue was between $150 million and $250 million.

Solana validators earn revenue from fees on transactions. Over the past year, revenue from fees flowed from across the ecosystem, including decentralized finance (DeFi), memecoins, AI apps, decentralized exchanges, DePIN, launchpads and trading tools.

Trading platforms remain Solana’s main revenue engine, accounting for 39%, or $1.12 billion, driven by apps like Photon and Axiom.

The report also notes that Solana is far ahead of Ethereum at a comparable stage. 

Five years after its launch, Ethereum’s monthly revenue was under $10 million, while Solana currently generates 20–30 times more. Its efficiency and low fees have helped the network to attract 1.2–1.5 million daily active addresses, roughly triple Ethereum’s at the same point in its lifecycle.

21Shares is a Switzerland-based asset management company and one of the largest crypto exchange-traded product (ETP) providers. It launched the world’s first Solana (SOL) exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe in 2021.

Related: Forward Industries Secures $1.65B Solana Treasury Raise

Solana ETFs and treasuries

As the 21Shares’ report noted, several companies have rebranded to Solana treasury companies this year. The result is that nearly $4 billion in SOL is now held on public company balance sheets. 

On Sept. 18, Nasdaq-listed Brera Holdings rebranded to Solmate following a $300 million oversubscribed PIPE raise, aiming to build a Solana-focused digital asset treasury and infrastructure platform. 

Solmate is now one of 18 tracked entities holding a combined 17.8 million SOL tokens. Leading the pack is Forward Industries with 6.822 million SOL, followed by Sharps Technology with 2.14 million SOL, according to data at the time of writing.

There are also several Solana exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications that could see approval if the US government reopens this month.

As Cointelegraph reported, several spot Solana ETF applications are awaiting decisions from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in October.

Deadlines for filings from Fidelity, VanEck, Grayscale, Canary and Franklin Templeton fall on Friday, while applications from 21Shares and Bitwise are scheduled for review on Oct. 16.

With the US government shut down, decisions are likely to be pushed back. But when the government does reopen, most believe the Solana ETFs will be approved.

On Polymarket, bettors think there’s a 99% chance that a Solana ETF will be approved by the end of the year. 

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