Solana Surges as Trump’s Memecoin Launches, Leaving Ether Struggling Against Competitors

Ethereum’s cryptocurrency is continually losing ground to competing tokens as it fails to capitalize on the momentum generated by President Donald Trump’s entrance into a highly speculative sector of the digital-assets market.

The Ether-to-Bitcoin price ratio — which compares the performance of the second highest token against Bitcoin, the largest — fell to its lowest point since 2021 on Monday, according to data from Bloomberg, while Bitcoin reached a record high of $109,241. Solana’s native token, a competitor to Ethereum, achieved new heights over the weekend.

Solana’s surge was primarily driven by two so-called memecoins launched on its blockchain by Trump and his wife Melania in the lead-up to his inauguration. Trump’s coin generated frenzied trading over the weekend, reaching a market capitalization of $15 billion before experiencing a sharp decline, based on CoinMarketCap data. The Republican’s pro-crypto stance has buoyed most major digital assets following his November victory over Democrat Kamala Harris.

“Ether has certainly been a loser in the recent memecoin frenzy, as many of the largest memecoins have emerged from the Solana ecosystem,” said Le Shi, Hong Kong managing director at market making firm Auros.

Memecoins, primarily composed of novelty tokens like Dogecoin, are cryptocurrencies known for their extreme volatility and minimal intrinsic value, which can experience staggering gains if they capture social media attention — yet they are equally vulnerable to rapid declines.

Solana, which promotes itself as an “Ethereum killer,” has become the preferred platform for memecoin initiatives. The price ratio of its token compared to Ether reached an all-time high on Sunday, as speculators flocked to the Trump coins.

While records are being broken in various sectors, Ether remains approximately 30% below its peak from 2021. The token has risen 39% over the past year, contrasting with gains of 156% and 180% for Bitcoin and Solana, respectively.

Ether struggles

The relatively weak demand for Ether has raised concerns among investors. In the last three months, a group of 12 Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the U.S. has seen net inflows exceeding $17 billion, compared to merely $3 billion for similar products that focus on Ether, as per Bloomberg data.

“There’s a feeling in the market that Ether hasn’t presented any new, exciting developments, leading to its stagnation,” Shi remarked.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently announced intentions to reform the leadership framework of the Ethereum Foundation with a focus on enhancing the network’s decentralization and resistance to censorship. However, Buterin emphasized that the organization will not engage in “lobbying regulators and influential political figures.”

Despite the excitement surrounding Trump’s memecoins, the crypto market saw a pullback in gains as he was inaugurated on Monday. He was anticipated to issue an executive order classifying the industry as a national priority, as previously reported by Bloomberg News, but no such directive has surfaced yet.

© 2025 Bloomberg

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