Could Solana Hit $2,000 by 2030? One Institutional Investor Thinks So.

One financial institution has published some price targets for Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) that are noteworthy for their bullishness.

The author of those estimates is Geoff Kendrick, head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered, and his Solana target for the end of the year is $135 -- well above the $94 neighborhood where it was as of Aug. 24, yet far below his forecast from earlier this year when he claimed it'd go to $250. However, beyond 2026, he sees it ascending into the stratosphere in the next few years, growing by more than 20 times over from its current level to reach a price of $2,000 by 2030.

So what does Standard Chartered see happening to Solana in the near term that could result in it performing so strongly in the medium term?

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It's true that upside might take a while to arrive

According to the forecasts it published in February, Standard Chartered expects the coin to rise to $400 in 2027, then $700 in 2028, and $1,200 in 2029, before ultimately hitting or surpassing $2,000 in 2030.

Kendrick's thesis for the coin is essentially that Solana is maturing rapidly, with its platform technology and ecosystem improving so as to trade the main activity driver on its blockchain from meme coins to micropayments (tiny transactions worth just a few cents). But, on Aug. 24, of the $13.4 million in transaction fees paid by protocols on the network, the single largest contributor by far was the meme coin launchpad Pump.fun, with $4.9 million; other meme coin-related projects were also heavily represented among the top 10 payers.

So while it's true that Solana's throughput is increasing, the maturation process Kendrick is pointing to still has a long way to go.

What has to go right for his prediction to come true?

Demand will be the main thing that could make the Standard Chartered estimate become reality.

Stablecoin turnover and utilization are among the metrics that investors will want to watch. On that score, things are proceeding; more wallets are using larger volumes of stablecoins to transact more frequently compared to a year ago, per the chain's official data aggregator.

The more important factor is value capture. Solana's price will probably only rise significantly if there is a mechanism by which activity on the blockchain can incur costs that remit value back to the coin. With its transaction fees being as low as they are currently, and with its supply not capped by any limit, holders will see their value get diluted over time, even if the blockchain is successful in attracting more traffic.

Two Solana Governance Proposals -- SGP-0002 and SGP-0003 -- are currently being voted on. Voting closes around Aug. 27. SGP-0002 would speed the slowdown in new coin creation, and SGP-0003 would burn a larger share of transaction fees. Both would tie network activity more directly to the coin's price, which could support significant gains over the next few years.

But if they or other similar proposals don't get passed, the only way Solana will be able to meet Standard Chartered's price targets is by riding short-lived extremes of sentiment, and even that might not be enough.

Alex Carchidi has positions in Solana. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Solana. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.