Solana's $657M Stock Trading Boom - When Will SOL Pump?

Host John Gillen speaks with Backpack co-founder and CEO Armani Ferrante after $657 million in tokenized stocks traded on Solana in one day, roughly 90% of it through Backpack. Ferrante explains how Backpack lets users move tokenized shares between DeFi and traditional brokerage accounts, supporting liquidity and price alignment across markets.

Ferrante argues that Solana is evolving into an API for finance, giving developers access to stocks, crypto assets, currencies and derivatives through a shared settlement layer. He also outlines the technical, legal and regulatory work required to expand from 88 listed symbols to global markets, and why tokenization is likely to unfold over years rather than immediately translate into higher SOL prices.

The discussion also examines competition from traditional exchanges, the complementary roles of spot assets and perpetual futures, and Backpack’s ambition to serve as regulated infrastructure for new brokerages. Ferrante’s broader thesis is that stablecoins opened the path for stocks and other real-world assets to move onchain, eventually bringing more of the global economy onto blockchain rails.