Solana Flips Shiba to Regain Footing Post-FTX — Is MATIC Next?
Solana is close to reclaiming its position in the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market value, but has Polygon’s native token in its way

Source: Lucas Agr/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks
Solana (SOL) is eyeing a return to the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market value — now trading only 25% below its price point recorded just before FTX imploded.
SOL sank more than 70% in the months following the Sam Bankman-Fried scandal, as markets rejected crypto associated with the disgraced alleged fraudster.
The trend had inspired markets to value memecoin shiba inu (SHIB) more than SOL for most of the past few months.
Solana’s ecosystem meanwhile hoped to distance itself from Bankman-Fried, historically one of the network’s loudest proponents and primary backers.
But SOL had spent most of January well ahead of SHIB — now valued at more than $9 billion compared to SHIB’s $6.4 billion.
SOL is currently whiskers shy of the top 10 by market cap, around $600 million short of polygon (MATIC) and $1.6 billion ahead of polkadot (DOT). The token sat ahead of both before its association with Bankman-Fried dragged it downward.
Solana has easily outperformed most top assets year to date, jumping from under $10 to nearly $24 — returning around 140%.
Still, it’s lagging behind bellwethers bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) since the end of October (FTX would file for bankruptcy two weeks later). BTC is up 11% while ETH is flat.
MATIC, the native token of Polygon — considered a direct rival to Solana — is up nearly 19% over the same period.
SOL overtaking MATIC to regain its original position would effectively mark the end of Bankman-Fried’s influence over the network.
Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:
- Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
- Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
- Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
- 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
- Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
- The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
- Supply Shock: Tracking Bitcoin’s rise from internet plaything worth less than a penny to global phenomenon disrupting money as we know it.