Solana

Solana is an open source project implementing a new, high-performance, permissionless blockchain. Solana is a general purpose blockchain similar to Ethereum. End user applications as of now include decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFT), marketplaces, games, and more. It aims to improve scalability by introducing a proof-of-history (PoH) consensus combined with the underlying proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus of the blockchain.

Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko published a whitepaper describing Proof of History, a technique that would become critical to Solana's blockchain infrastructure, in Nov. 2017. 

Co-founder Greg Fitzgerald, who had worked with Yakovenko at Qualcomm, began prototyping the open source implementation of the whitepaper. It was published under the name Silk in 2018. 

After starting the company under the name Loom, Yakovenko, Fitzgerald, and other co-founders rebranded to Solana. Solana launched on Mainnet Beta in March 2020.

Solana was built to facilitate the development of scalable, user-friendly decentralized apps with low costs and high speeds for transactions.

Solana believes its unique blockchain architecture that combines the proof-of-stake consensus mechanism and its own proof of history mechanism is the key to achieving these goals.

Proof of history works almost like a cryptographic timestamp that proves that an event has occurred at a specific time. It enables the blockchain to work fast while maintaining security and decentralization.

There are about 304 million SOL in circulation as of November 2021. Solana has an initial inflation rate of 8%, which will decrease by 15% a year until it reaches a long-term inflation rate of 1.5%. SOL is Solana’s native token.

Solana competes with other blockchain platforms such as Ethereum and Avalanche to host crypto projects such as NFTs, decentralized exchanges, and gaming. 

Developers and users flocked from Ethereum to Solana due to high transaction costs, but many could gravitate back towards Ethereum if it manages to lower costs, which could happen as a result of the Ethereum 2.0 upgrade and layer 2 rollups. 

Solana.com
Docs.solana.com/history
Forums.solana.com

The freshly minted Solana meme coin is trading over $0.62 and its market cap rose from $461 million to $621 million in just two days.

CHILLGUY Goes Boost Guy as Solana Meme Coin Hits All-Time High

Dogecoin

The cryptocurrency market has experienced a significant downturn, with major digital assets posting notable losses.

Dogecoin and Solana Lead Double-Digit Losses as Crypto Market Faces Sharp Downturn

Crypto users are wary that Pump.Fun is “dumping on them” after the token launchpad sent another 100,000 Solana to an exchange.

Solana's Pump.Fun Moves Another $22M to Kraken—Founder Says It's Not All Being Sold

Pump.fun has accounted for over 60% of Solana DEX transactions for the past three months—is the network over reliant?

Pump.fun Accounted for 62% of Solana DEX Transactions in November, So Far

Too much leverage has led to an inevitable pause in the crypto market, but this is largely seen as a healthy correction, analysts argued.

Dogecoin, Solana Post Double-Digit Losses as Crypto Market Momentum Stalls

Popular meme coin creation platform Pump.fun disabled the livestream feature after it was used for an array of controversial streams.

Solana Meme Coin Launchpad Pump.Fun Drops Livestreaming Amid Backlash

Pump.fun, a decentralized platform for creating Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)-based meme coins, has come under intense scrutiny after reports of harmful and violent behavior surfaced on its livestream feature. What Happened: The platform, which has gained popularity in the crypto space, is now facing backlash from the community, with many calling for the livestream function to be disabled altogether until proper moderation tools are in place.

Solana Meme Coin Platform Pump.Fun Faces Backlash Over Scandalous Livestreams, But Polymarket Traders Aren't Convinced They'll Go Dark

Solana Meme Coin Platform Pump.Fun Faces Backlash Over Scandalous Livestreams, But Polymarket Traders Aren't Convinced It'll Go Dark

Over $116 billion worth of decentralized exchange (dex) trades have been placed on the Solana network in November. Record Volume for Solana DEXs As of Nov. 25, Solana's monthly trade volume on decentralized exchanges (dexs) surpassed $100 billion for the first time. The network's dex trade volume so far in November has reached $116.

New Record for Solana Decentralized Exchanges With Monthly Volume Surpassing $100 Billion

The Solana network reported over $109 billion in decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volume for November 2023, marking the first time it has surpassed the $100 billion threshold.

Solana Achieves Record DEX Volume Exceeding $100 Billion in November

The monthly fees from pump.fun and Raydium also recorded all-time highs in November as the memecoin frenzy continues.

Solana's monthly DEX volume surpasses $100 billion for the first time

Investor and crypto bull Dan Tapiero says that the rise of thousands of new memecoins in the digital asset space is laying the groundwork for traditional finance to adopt blockchain.

Investor Dan Tapiero Says Solana Memecoin Explosions ‘Practice' for Migration of $100 Trillion in TradFi Capital

"[T]he SEC is now engaging with issuers on this product, which is obviously a positive sign," says ETF Store President Nate Geraci.

Will there be a Solana ETF by the end of 2025?

Ethereum

A closely followed crypto analyst believes that the most popular memecoin by market cap is primed for another leg up. Pseudonymous analyst Altcoin Sherpa tells his 230,700 followers on the social media platform X that Dogecoin (DOGE) is printing a bullish pattern on the four-hour chart after bouncing off of the $0.36 level.

Crypto Trader Says Large-Cap Memecoin Set To Continue Rallying, Updates Outlook on Ethereum and Solana

The dominance of Ethereum in defi makes it the top choice for stability and institutional-grade projects but Solana's speed and affordability could see it outpace Ethereum in relative gains.

Ethereum vs. Solana: Who Will Emerge as the Top Altcoin This Cycle?

The following article is adapted from The Block's newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

The Daily: Solana hits new all-time high, XRP surges after Gensler announces SEC departure and more

Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) reached a new all-time high on Friday morning, trading at $264.31 on Coinbase Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN), according to TradingView. This comes two years after the collapse of the crypto exchange FTX, which had sent Solana prices plummeting.

Solana Hits $264 Record High As ETF Filings, Regulatory Optimism Drive Market Momentum

Solana's recent surge to over $260 marks a significant recovery from its low of $8 in late 2022.

Solana Surges Past $260 as Bitwise, VanEck and 21Shares Drive Institutional Confidence With ETF Filings

Solana gained 11% in the past 24 hours, trading above $263 to reach a new all-time high amid an extended crypto market rally.

Solana jumps 11% to reach all-time high amid market rally

The token of late has benefitted from multiple catalysts, including meme coin action, growing DeFi activity on the Solana network and the coming crypto-friendly presidential administration.

Solana's SOL Surges to Record High Above $260

After plunging to nearly $8 in 2022, Solana has finally fully rebounded, jumping above the $260 mark Thursday for the first time ever.

Solana Hits All-Time High Price Two Years After FTX Nearly Sent It to Zero

The SEC's reported progress on Solana ETF filings and potential leadership changes have sparked optimism, signaling a possible shift in cryptocurrency investment regulations. Solana ETF Filings Spark New Hope Discussions about a solana (SOL) spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) between the U.S.

Solana ETF Momentum Grows Amid Reports of SEC Engagement

Crypto-investments firm Bitwise took a big jump Thursday toward offering a Solana exchange traded fund (ETF) in the United States.

Bitwise Joins Mounting Race for Solana ETF

Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) is up 10% on the day and closing in on its all-time high as new Solana spot ETF filings indicate continued institutional interest. What Happened: Eleanor Terrett of Fox Business on Thursday tweeted that the SEC is reportedly engaging with issuers interested in launching a Solana spot ETF, with progress being made on S-1 applications, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Solana Soars 10%, Reaches New All-Time High Market Cap: What Is Going On?

Crypto asset manager Bitwise has filed for a Solana ETF amid increased optimism about SEC approvals under a Donald Trump administration.

News for Solana Crypto (SOL)