Solana DEX Volume Drops 82% as Meme Launches Fall

On-chain trading activity on Solana declined sharply over a two-week span in May, with weekly decentralized exchange volume down about 82%. Data from Dune show total weekly DEX volume across Solana protocols fell from about $104.3 billion in the week of May 11 to roughly $18.8 billion in the week of May 25.

Meteora, the largest DEX by volume on Solana, accounted for about $93.1 billion of the May 11 total and declined to roughly $9.2 billion by May 25. Weekly DEX volume on the network was also more than 50% lower than levels seen in January.

On-chain measures indicate new meme-token issuance on Solana fell by about half in early 2026, reducing the flow of fresh tokens that enter automated market makers. Launch platforms that previously minted new meme coins slowed activity, and fewer newly listed tokens moved through exchanges and AMMs during the period.

Glassnode’s HODL Waves metric, which groups supply by holding period, shows the 1-to-2-year holder cohort held 16.049% of SOL supply on May 21 and about 15% on June 1. The reduction in that cohort’s share began on May 21, within the same May 11–25 window when DEX volume dropped.

The timing of the DEX throughput decline and the reduction in the 1-to-2-year holder cohort overlap in the same mid-May period. The largest absolute volume losses were concentrated on platforms that specialize in rapid token listings and high-turnover trading.

Lower DEX throughput corresponds with fewer short-term trading opportunities for high-frequency strategies and automated bots that depend on rapid token turnover. Solana experienced elevated retail trading and frequent meme-coin launches during 2024 and 2025; the recent Dune and Glassnode metrics show changes in those on-chain activity measures.