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 new proposal seeks to scrap Solana's 60 million compute unit cap, letting block size scale with validator hardware.

Solana Developers Consider Removing Block Limits Post-Alpenglow Upgrade

The change would allow high-performance validators to fit more transactions into a single block, earning more revenue and scaling the network's capacity.

Jump's Firedancer team proposes uncapping Solana blocks after Alpenglow upgrade

Asset managers have amended their spot Solana ETF filings to incorporate staking rewards, with analysts saying the funds could launch within weeks.

Analysts say Solana ETFs could be weeks away following flurry of amended filings

Hashdex Asset Management and Nasdaq Global Indexes said it has expanded its ETP to include other cryptocurrencies, including XRP and Solana.

Hashdex expands crypto ETF to include XRP, Solana after SEC greenlights broader listing standards

Bitcoin

Ethereum

A rough early session for crypto markets took a turn for the worse in U.S. afternoon hours Thursday, with bitcoin (BTC) tumbling below $109,000, its weakest price in nearly a month.

Crypto Liquidations Top $1B as Bitcoin, Ether, Solana Selloffs Worsen

AIQuant promises 24/7 autonomous trading across multiple blockchains, aiming to simplify and gamify algorithmic strategies via AI.

These AI Bots Will Trade Your Crypto Across Solana, BNB Chain and Base

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana made up the lion's share of liquidations as the crypto market took a dive Thursday morning.

Crypto Market Liquidations Top $442M as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana Dip

The price of Solana (SOL) rose to a high of $253 but was rejected at the overhead resistance level of $260.

Solana Trades In A Narrow Range Above $200

Solana treasury firm DeFi Development Corp. saw shares pop after announcing it was increasing its share repurchase program to $100 million.

DeFi Development Corp. Stock Rises as Solana Firm Boosts Buyback Plan to $100 Million

Solana is underperforming Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP this week as analysts cite deleveraging pressure, priced-in corporate purchases, and upcoming FTX distributions.

Why Is Solana Falling Harder Than Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP This Week?

The company is one of the largest Solana-based digital asset treasuries with over 2 million SOL tokens as of last week.

Solana DAT DeFi Development boosts share buyback to as much as $100 million

Helius Medical Technologies has begun accumulating a solana treasury, acquiring more than 760,000 SOL with plans to expand its holdings using $335 million in cash reserves. The move signals confidence in solana's ecosystem and yield-generating design.

Helius Launches Solana Treasury Strategy With 760,000 SOL Acquisition

Wall Street giant Morgan Stanley confirmed that it plans to offer crypto trading via E*Trade in a team-up with infrastructure provider Zerohash.

Morgan Stanley Will Enable Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana Trading via E*Trade

Raiku has raised $13.5 million across seed and pre-seed rounds from investors including Pantera Capital, Jump Crypto, and Lightspeed Faction.

Raiku raises $13.5 million to bring ‘guaranteed' transactions on Solana

Fitell has entered into an up to $100 million convertible note facility with a U.S.-based institutional investor.

First Australian Solana treasury Fitell Corporation secures $100 million credit line

Korea Blockchain Week 2025 brings big WLFI announcements and the first South Korean Solana treasury on Day 1.

Solana News: KBW25 Yields WLFI Debit Card and First Korean SOL Treasury

Avalanche (CRYPTO: AVAX) is gaining traction among traders, who are taking long positions as institutional interest rises. Cryptocurrency Ticker Price Market Cap 7-Day Trend Avalanche (CRYPTO: AVAX) $34.98 $14.8 billion +17.5% Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) $4,187.99 $505.3 billion -5.7% Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) $219.43 $119.2 billion -5.6% Trader Notes: Polaris XBT highlighted Avalanche's strength, noting it has successfully retested its range and surged higher, thereby outperforming other altcoins.

Ethereum, XRP, Solana Left Behind By This Scaramucci-Backed Blockchain Rallying 17% In 1 Week

On the episode of the All In podcast last week, Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko explained why Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) remains secure and resilient even as large holders concentrate wealth and state-sponsored attacks loom. Bitcoin's Centralization Concerns Won't Break The Network Host Jason Calacanis raised concerns about centralization, noting that companies like MicroStrategy hold significant portions of Bitcoin.

Solana Co-Founder Anatoly Yakovenko Says Bitcoin's Resilience Holds Strong Despite Centralization Fears, State-Sponsored Threats

Helius Medical Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSDT) rallied in Monday's after-hours trading after announcing a Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) purchase worth $175 million. Helius Medical Kickstarts SOL Treasury Play The stock popped over 8% in after-hours, reversing its losses during the regular trading session.

Helius Medical Stock Pops 8.5% After Hours On Solana Treasury Purchases

Pantera Capital believes an approved solana spot ETF in the fourth quarter could trigger a surge in institutional demand. The firm argues institutions are currently under‑allocated to solana compared with bitcoin and ether.

Solana ETF Could Spark Major Institutional Inflows, Says Pantera Capital

Raivo “Rastaland” Plavnieks is battling a rare form of cancer, and Solana funds raised for his treatment were swiped via a malware-infected game on Steam.

Streamer Drained of $31K in Solana Raised for Cancer Treatment After He Downloads Game

Binance.US has announced the listing of Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)-based meme coin Mew (CRYPTO: MEW). M. Kyoko, Director of Mew, said in an interview with Benzinga the listing will “help the brand increase accessibility within the U.S. crypto market.

Solana Meme Coin Mew Secures Binance.US Listing

Leah Wald is stepping down after joining the firm in July 2024 and leading its transition to become one of the first Solana treasury firms.

SOL Strategies CEO Leah Wald, who led transition into a Solana holding company, to step down

The medical device firm's stock has fallen double-digits after it announced the first acquisition of Solana for its new SOL treasury.

Helius Stock Dives After First Solana Treasury Buy for $168 Million in SOL

Earlier this month, Helius Medical Technologies soared 250% on a $500 million SOL treasury raise led by Pantera and Summer Capital.

News for Solana Crypto (SOL)