Solana (SOL) traded below $84 on April 30 after being decisively rejected from the $88 resistance level, putting the asset at a technical crossroads as bearish chart formations conflict with a series of major adoption announcements.
“Solana could be setting up for a 10% move as it approaches the apex of this triangle,” crypto analyst Ali Charts said in a post on X, referring to a descending triangle pattern that has formed on the token’s chart. The pattern suggests a potential breakout toward $93 or a breakdown toward $76.
The token’s price, which stood at $83.39 with $4.6 billion in daily volume as of Thursday, according to CoinGecko data, faces significant technical pressure. It is trading below its 50-day exponential moving average of $86, a key hurdle for bulls. A failure to hold the immediate support zone around $80 could trigger a deeper correction to levels at $73 or the February low of $67, technical observers note. The bearish sentiment was amplified by a broader market downturn, with Bitcoin falling below $76,000 as oil prices surged to $126 a barrel on geopolitical tensions, per an Axios report.
Despite the negative technical outlook, the Solana ecosystem received a major boost from South Korean financial giant Shinhan Card. The company announced it signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Solana Foundation to advance stablecoin payments on the network. This follows a successful proof-of-concept and paves the way for integrating Solana’s high-speed infrastructure for real-world merchant payments. This development stacks with Visa’s recent expansion of its stablecoin settlement pilot to include the Solana network and Meta’s use of USDC on Solana for creator payments.
Technicals Signal Caution
The prevailing chart pattern for Solana is a descending triangle, characterized by a flat support base and a declining upper trendline. As the price compresses toward the apex of the triangle, a breakout becomes more likely. While this could resolve to the upside, a descending triangle is traditionally a bearish pattern.
Adding to the complexity, analysis based on Elliott Wave theory suggests SOL is in a critical support area. An analyst known as @moretradingonl on X noted the price has reached a key "blue target zone" between $79 and $82, where a corrective wave could find its floor. However, they cautioned that a confirmed bottom requires a "micro 5-wave move up" and a break of a descending signal line, neither of which has occurred. A break below $79 would invalidate the immediate bottoming thesis and open the door to a deeper correction.
Adoption Provides Counterweight
The fundamental picture offers a stark contrast to the technical warnings. The Shinhan Card partnership is a significant step toward real-world utility, aiming to build a hybrid finance model that combines traditional and decentralized finance for secure, regulated transactions.
This move is part of a broader trend of established payment and technology companies leveraging Solana's high-throughput capabilities. Visa's inclusion of Solana in its stablecoin settlement expansion and Meta's adoption for creator payouts in Colombia and the Philippines demonstrate growing confidence in the network's ability to handle scalable, low-cost transactions. The question for investors is whether this accelerating adoption can provide enough buying pressure to absorb the technical and macroeconomic headwinds.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
