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

Bitcoin

Ethereum

The chief investment officer of crypto asset management firm Bitwise says that Ethereum (ETH) appears to be in a period of stagnation after being outpaced by both Bitcoin (BTC) and Solana (SOL).

Ethereum in ‘Doldrums' As Bitcoin and Solana Outperform ETH, Says Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan – Here's Why

Pastor Kelby has been ousted from the Church of the Smoking Chicken Fish, following a number of allegations surfacing.

Solana Meme Coin Church Turns on Pastor After Scam Allegations Surface

DePIN refers to physical infrastructure networks built using blockchain technology and token incentives which other projects can use without having to buy and run their own equipment.

Borderless Capital Introduces $100M DePIN Fund Backed by Peaq, Solana Foundation

A crypto project that made waves last year with its iris-scanning technology has made its way to a new blockchain. According to a new blog announcement from Sam Altman's Worldcoin (WLD), the identity-focused project is making the jump to Solana (SOL) via the Wormhole interoperability platform.

Sam Altman's Worldcoin (WLD) Expands to Solana (SOL) Blockchain Via Wormhole

The Pipe Network contributor has raised capital to help scale, recruit professionals and launch a private beta and testnet.

Multicoin and Solana Ventures join $10 million Series A in Permissionless Labs

The price of Solana (SOL) has recovered as buyers have halted the decline above the $120 support. Price analysis by Coinidol.com.

Solana Recovers But Selling Pressure Is Present At $140

Superfast founder Martin Tromp has launched a Solana validator in one of Teraco's Johannesburg data centers. Solana is a fast, scalable blockchain platform competing with Ethereum. As a proof-of-stake system, validators like Tromp's play a crucial role in maintaining network security and verifying transactions.

Network Latency Drives Solana Validator to South Africa's Commercial Hub

Meanwhile, the SEC claimed that when it said "crypto asset securities" it never meant tokens were actually securities.

The Daily: MicroStrategy buys over $1 billion more bitcoin, Wormhole brings Worldcoin's World ID to Solana, Starknet community approves staking vote and more

Wormhole contributors have completed the work of making it possible to build Solana apps that integrate World IDs.

Solana applications can ‘prioritize real humans' with Wormhole's latest World ID integration

Aave

A widely followed analyst and trader is leaning bullish on an altcoin in the Ethereum (ETH) ecosystem while updating his outlook on three crypto assets.

Crypto Trader Says Ethereum-Based Altcoin Undeniably Very Strong, Updates Outlook on Solana, BNB and Sui

The head of digital assets research at exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider VanEck says that Bitcoin (BTC) and one or two layer-1 blockchains will outperform the market.

Bitcoin and ‘One or Two Layer-Ones' Will Outperform Market, Says Matthew Sigel – Here Are His Top Altcoin Picks

Manifest's primary contributors are the founder of Mango Markets, CTO of Dual Finance and Head of Trading at CKS Systems.

Mango Markets founder collaborates on CKS Systems's Solana-based unlimited orderbook Manifest

Pump.fun is “stale” traders believe as the protocol fails to keep more than 100 tokens above a $1 million market cap.

Solana's Pump.Fun Has Launched Millions of Tokens—Fewer Than 100 Are Worth Much at All

With a new $12 million fundraising round, the renewable energy company aims to reward customers for supporting the power grid.

Fuse Plugs Solana Token Into Energy Distribution DePIN Play

Similar to MicroStrategy's pivot to bitcoin, the newly rebrand SOL Strategies is giving investors a way to gain exposure to Solana.

Cypherpunk Holdings goes all in on Solana, rebrands as SOL Strategies

Popular Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) meme coin launch platform pump.fun raised eyebrows by selling over seven figures worth of SOL as traders foresee promising price action in the near future. What Happened: The Pump.fun account sold 9,940 SOL, worth $1.3 million, around 20 hours ago.

Solana Meme Coin Platform Raises Eyebrows By Selling $1.3M Worth Of SOL

A widely followed crypto strategist believes sharp recoveries are in store for Ethereum (ETH) and its competitor Solana (SOL). Starting with the top smart contract protocol, pseudonymous analyst Kaleo tells his 647,300 followers on the social media platform X that his bearish scenario for Ethereum is no longer valid.

‘Run It Back' – Crypto Analyst Predicts Massive Rallies for Ethereum and Solana, Says October Will Be ‘Lit'

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

The Daily: Trump vs. Harris debate sparks crypto risk-off sentiment, Indodax faces $20 million exploit, Matter Labs poaches Solana Foundation exec and more

Matter Labs has hired Meghan Hughes, the former VP of Marketing at the Solana Foundation, as its new chief marketing officer.

ZKsync developer Matter Labs poaches Solana Foundation's former VP of marketing

Huma's payment-finance platform aims to address the liquidity needs of trade financing using blockchain technology for faster settlement.

Tokenized RWA Platform Huma Finance Gets $38M Investment, Plans Expansion to Solana and Stellar's Soroban

A closely followed crypto strategist and trader says Solana (SOL) and three additional altcoins are his best picks for longer-term holds. Pseudonymous analyst Altcoin Sherpa tells his 223,400 followers on the social media platform X that SOL will likely remain in an uptrend as long as it holds $110 as support.

Trader Says Solana and Three Additional Altcoins Are His Picks for Longer-Term Accumulation

The total fees generated by the Solana network have hit a six-month low, with figures not seen since early March.

Solana fees plunge to six-month low amid declining Pump.fun popularity

Virtual horse racing game Photo Finish has announced the Solana Derby and interactive experience at Solana Breakpoint, adding to the growth for the company led by Madden and other gaming veterans. Solana Derby: Based on the Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) blockchain, Photo Finish is a virtual horse racing game that combines play-to-earn elements uniting sports fans and Web3 enthusiasts opportunities to both play and earn through racing, breeding and staking.

EXCLUSIVE: Photo Finish Live Announces Solana Derby, Interactive Experience: 'How We Envision The Future Of Spectating And Betting On Sports'

Options tied to bitcoin and ether show a bias for put options, according to QCP Capital.

Crypto Traders Remain Cautious About Downside Risks in Bitcoin, Ether; SOL Stands Out

The funds will be used to bring DRiP's mobile app to market and expand the development of its creator tools.

News for Solana Crypto (SOL)