Trade and Solana it was twice as bumpy as Bitcoin in 2025, dashing hopes of the market maturing beyond the largest cryptocurrency.
Realized volatility over the past 365 days reached 87% for Solana and 80% for XRP, compared to a calmer 43% for BTC, according to data tracked by CoinDesk Indices. BNB clocked at 55% and ether 77%.
Altcoins tend to be more volatile than bitcoin over the years. Still, the latest data stands out because it shows that exchange-traded funds and other alternative investment vehicles tied to these tokens need to attract greater liquidity to weather the BTC cold.
With the exception of BNB, the four largest coins by market value (excluding stablecoins) have US-listed CME futures and spot ETFs as indicators of institutional activity.
XRP ETFs have generated more than $1 billion in investor money since their debut in November, according to data source SoSoValue. The equally nascent SOL ETFs amassed $763.91 million.
If demand remains strong in the coming year, it could dampen price volatility, like that seen for Bitcoin.
Bitcoin spot ETFs, which debuted in January 2024, have attracted $56.96 billion in net inflows to date. This surge has fueled interest in advanced products such as covered calls on these ETFs, leading to a steady decline in BTC volatility this year.
The same can be said about ether ETFs, which began trading the following July and have seen net inflows of $12.4 billion since their mid-2024 debut.
