Solana CME futures volume and open interest more than triple in July as ETF momentum builds

Solana CME futures volume and open interest more than tripled month-over-month in July to reach fresh records since the products began trading.

Aggregated CME SOL futures trading volume jumped 252%, rising from $2.3 billion in June to $8.1 billion in July, while average monthly open interest rose 203% from $132.3 million to $400.9 million, according to The Block's data dashboard.

"We believe this surge is primarily driven by the imminent launch of a Solana spot ETF in the U.S., which has generated significant hype around the asset — similar to what occurred with both Ethereum and Bitcoin," CoinShares Head of Research James Butterfill told The Block.

"Solana futures-based ETFs in the U.S. recorded over $500 million in inflows during July alone, likely fueled by anticipation of the spot ETF approval and the accompanying positive price momentum. This inflow represents a substantial 23% of total assets under management (AUM)," Butterfill added. "The rise in open interest (OI) further suggests that Solana is maturing as a tradable asset, following the same trajectory we've already seen with Ethereum and Bitcoin."

CME Group launched Solana futures on March 17, offering both a micro-sized contract (25 SOL) and a larger-sized contract (500 SOL), expanding its crypto derivatives lineup beyond BTC and ETH. "One sizable step closer to a SOL ETF," VanEck Head of Digital Assets Research Matthew Sigel said following the launch — with regulated futures typically serving as a precursor for SEC approval of spot crypto ETFs.

"With the launch of our new SOL futures contracts, we are responding to increasing client demand for a broader set of regulated products to manage cryptocurrency price risk," Giovanni Vicioso, Global Head of Cryptocurrency Products at CME Group, said at the time. "As Solana continues to evolve into the platform of choice for developers and investors, these new futures contracts will provide a capital-efficient tool to support their investment and hedging strategies."

While traders initially showed "little interest" in the Solana futures on their debut, according to analysts at K33, with trading volumes coming in at just $12.3 million on day one, activity has grown substantially since then.

CME BTC and ETH futures remain dominant

Nevertheless, the Solana figures still pale in comparison to CME's Bitcoin and Ethereum futures products. CME Bitcoin futures aggregated trading volume rose 23% to $275.3 billion in July, with average open interest up 8.5% from June at $17.8 billion, per The Block's data dashboard.

Meanwhile, CME Ethereum futures aggregated trading volume rose 82% to $118.1 billion for the month, with average open interest gaining 75% to $5.2 billion.

However, on a market-cap-weighted basis, the figures are becoming more comparable over time. SOL currently has a market cap of $90.5 billion, compared to $2.3 trillion and $436.7 billion for BTC and ETH, respectively, according to The Block's price page.

Growing Solana ETF approval traction

The activity boost comes amid growing traction for spot Solana exchange-traded fund approvals in the U.S., with several asset managers, including Franklin Templeton, Bitwise, Fidelity, Canary Capital, CoinShares, Grayscale and VanEck filing amended S-1 registration statements with the Securities and Exchange Commission late Thursday in a sign of positive progress toward joining the U.S. spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs that launched in January 2024 and July 2024, respectively.

REX‑Osprey launched the first U.S. ETF offering SOL exposure with native staking rewards under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the "'40 Act") as a workaround compared to the more common Securities Act of 1933 ('33 Act) route used by spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. While not a standard spot ETF under the 1933 Act, the fund still holds actual SOL — at least 50% directly staked — with the rest allocated to staking vehicles such as exchange-traded products and liquid staking tokens.

"REX-Osprey SOL + Staking ETF (SSK) got listed on July 2. ETF listing increases futures activity as ETF market makers need to hedge their [positions]," Presto Head of Research Peter Chung told The Block, also helping to explain the boost in CME Solana futures activity.