Major Bank Expects Solana to Outperform Bitcoin: When and How?

Standard Chartered is urging investors to look through near-term volatility in digital assets and focus on what it calls “quality” blockchain projects.

The remark comes as the recent selloff reshapes relative value across the crypto market.

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Standard Chartered Backs Ethereum and Solana for Long-Term Outperformance Despite Near-Term Volatility

Geoff Kendrick, the bank’s Head of FX and Digital Assets Research, said he is actively accumulating during the downturn. According to the analyst, the pullback is a defining moment for long-term positioning.

Within that framework, Standard Chartered continues to favor Ethereum and Solana as its top layer-1 exposures. Kendrick reiterated that view explicitly, adding:

Recently, Standard Chartered said it saw Ethereum outperforming Bitcoin, citing DeFi dominance, scalability upgrades, and regulatory clarity.

The bank, however, has tempered its near-term expectations for Solana. Standard Chartered lowered its end-2026 price forecast for SOL to $250 from $310. On this, they cite the time required for the network’s next major use case to mature.

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Despite that cut, the bank raised its longer-dated projections, arguing that Solana’s structural advantages remain intact.

Solana’s Shift from Meme Coins to Micropayments Could Drive Long-Term Outperformance

According to Standard Chartered, Solana’s ultra-low-cost, high-throughput architecture positions it to eventually dominate micropayments. This, Kendrick says, is particularly true as AI-driven applications and stablecoin-based transactions gain traction.

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If that thesis plays out, the bank expects SOL to outperform Bitcoin between 2027 and 2030, while only gradually catching up to Ethereum as the ecosystem scales.

The report highlights a subtle but important shift underway on Solana’s decentralized exchanges. While the network has long been associated with meme coin activity, flows are increasingly rotating toward SOL-stablecoin trading pairs.

These stablecoins, Standard Chartered notes, are turning over two to three times faster than their Ethereum counterparts.

That evolution could help Solana shed its “meme coin discount,” which previously weighed on valuation and deterred TradFi participants.

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Analysts Back Standard Chartered’s Quality Wins Narrative

Market commentators broadly echoed the bank’s “quality wins” narrative. Investor Mike Alfred described the drawdown as a textbook risk-off move.

Developer and investor Mike Ippolito struck a similar tone, arguing that sentiment has swung too far in the negative direction.

Standard Chartered expects Solana to underperform Ethereum through 2026 and into 2027. But beyond that window, the bank sees a catch-up phase driven by scale, utility, and cost advantages.

In Kendrick’s view, the current volatility is less a warning sign than a sorting mechanism, one that may ultimately reward investors willing to buy quality while the market is still unsettled.