On April 25, 2025, venture capital fund RockawayX announced the successful raising of 125 million USD for a new fund focused on supporting startup projects on the Solana blockchain. Although this network is witnessing a decline in user activity, RockawayX's move demonstrates strong faith in the long-term potential of Solana. Can this investment help Solana regain its position in the Layer-1 race? Let's analyze in detail.
RockawayX Invests 125 Million USD in Solana: Strategic Vision
#RockawayX , a venture capital fund specializing in cryptocurrency, has raised 125 million USD to establish a new fund focused on early-stage startup projects on Solana – the world's second-largest Layer-1 blockchain by total value locked (TVL). This fund will finance and develop projects aimed at boosting the growth of the Solana ecosystem, especially as this network is losing its allure.
CEO and founder of RockawayX, Viktor Fischer, emphasized: “Instead of investing in other Layer-1s, we focus on building applications on Solana and becoming the first users to support founders – from providing liquidity, operating solvers to hardware services.” Although the identities of the liquidity providers for the fund have not been disclosed, a source revealed to Decrypt that the Solana Foundation is an important liquidity provider.
The Collaborative Journey with Solana: From 2018 Until Now
RockawayX started investing in Solana in 2018 when participating in the network's seed funding round. Since then, the fund has partnered with over 15 projects on Solana, including Kamino, Squads, Exponent, and DoubleZero. This collaboration is strengthened by RockawayX's preparation to launch the Solana City accelerator center in Dubai, in coordination with the Solana Foundation and Helius Labs. This center will help RockawayX discover and support potential projects, thereby enhancing $SOL 's competitiveness in the blockchain space.
Challenges Facing Solana: Users Decline, SOL Prices Plummet
Although RockawayX has great faith in Solana, this network is facing many challenges. According to DeFi Llama, the total value locked (TVL) of Solana has decreased by 30% in the past three months, down to 9.16 billion USD – an indicator reflecting a decline in user activity. The price of the SOL token has also dropped sharply by 41%, from a previous high to 148.26 USD, according to CoinGecko. The main reason is the cooling off of the meme coin craze – which was a major driver for Solana in 2024.
Meanwhile, competitors like $ETH (despite struggling with the SOL/ETH rate peaking at 0.082) are still working hard to improve with the Pectra upgrade (expected on 07/05/2025). Solana's decline raises the question of whether RockawayX's investment can help this network regain its form.
Long-Term Potential: Can Solana Swim Against the Tide?
Although Solana is facing difficulties, RockawayX's 125 million USD investment brings many positive prospects:
Supporting the ecosystem: The fund will finance startup projects, from DeFi, infrastructure to decentralized networks, helping Solana build a more diverse and sustainable ecosystem.
Enhancing innovation: The Solana City center in Dubai will be a launchpad for new projects, attracting developers and investors, thereby promoting activity on the network.
Institutional confidence: RockawayX is not the only organization investing in Solana. Previously, Upexi raised 100 million USD to accumulate SOL, while Rakurai raised 3 million USD to improve staking on Solana. These moves show long-term confidence in the network's potential.
SOLUSDTPerp.130.19+1.97%
Comparison With The Broader Market
The crypto market is currently experiencing many positive developments. Bitcoin is hovering around 85,000 USD, supported by major institutions like Strategy (531,644 BTC) and Metaplanet (4,855 $BTC ). Institutional money continues to flow into Bitcoin, with “whales” absorbing over 300% of the annual supply issued. Meanwhile, Solana, despite the price drop, still holds the position of the second-largest Layer-1 by TVL, indicating strong competitive potential if current difficulties can be overcome.
Conclusion: Will Solana Regain Its Position?
RockawayX's 125 million USD investment in Solana is a strong signal, demonstrating confidence in the long-term potential of this network, even as users decline and SOL prices plummet by 41% to 148.26 USD. With support from the Solana Foundation, the Solana City center in Dubai, and projects like Kamino, Squads, Solana has the opportunity to regain its form in the Layer-1 race. Investors should closely monitor to seize opportunities as this ecosystem recovers and grows in the near future.
Risk Warning: Crypto investment carries high risks due to price volatility and legal instability. Please consider carefully before participating.