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

Jupiter's massive airdrop is underway, and so far Solana is running relatively smoothly despite the immense demand for JUP.

JUP Up Over 70% as Solana Holds Steady for Jupiter Airdrop

The JUP-USD perpetual traded at 65 cents on Aevo at press time, implying a market capitalization of $700 million at the inception.

Solana DEX Jupiter's JUP Token to Debut With 1.35B Circulating Supply

Solana sees resurgent interest and activity as traders anticipate launch of new Jupiter token.

Solana Network Usage Surges as Traders Bet on Continued Growth

Chainlink

Polygon

Arbitrum

Polkadot

A widely followed crypto strategist is predicting bullish continuations for a handful of altcoins including Solana (SOL), Chainlink (LINK) and Polygon (MATIC). Analyst Michaël van de Poppe tells his 692,000 followers on the social media platform X that the native asset of the smart contract platform Solana looks primed for a move to the upside.

Analyst Predicts Rallies for Solana, Chainlink, Polygon and Two Additional Altcoins – Here Are His Targets

SOL is back above $100 as various Solana network metrics spike ahead of Wednesday's Jupiter (JUP) token launch.

Solana Network Activity Surges as Crypto Traders Turn Bullish on SOL

“JUPuary” is nearly over, and there's a massive airdrop at the end of it. Get ready for Jupiter's Solana airdrop with this explainer.

Jupiter Airdrop: What You Need to Know About the Solana JUP Token Launch

Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) surged 8% on Monday, trading once again above the psychologically important $100 threshold. Fundamental factors for the rise are increasing daily active addresses and a rise of meaningful applications on the Solana network.

Solana At $105 Has Analysts Bullish: 'It Will Converge On Ethereum Faster Than Most Believe'

GameStop might be getting out of the crypto world, but a new unofficial GME token on Solana is white hot right now.

'GameStop' Meme Coin on Solana Pumps 330% as Gaming Giant Bails on NFTs

Monthly transaction volumes for January on Solana have reached a multi-year high, according The Block data.

Solana monthly transaction volume hits multi-year high

Developer shop Anza will roll out a new client for Solana named Agave, forked from the original Solana Labs client.

Former Solana Labs members form ‘Anza' developer shop, prepare to unveil Agave validator client

Bitcoin

Ethereum

Bitcoin BTC and cryptocurrencies—including major coins ethereum, XRP XRP and solana—have rocketed higher in recent months (with one Wall Street legend warning the U.S. dollar is "finished").

Crypto Is Suddenly Braced For A Huge China Earthquake After Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP And Solana Price Surge

The co-founder of software giant Palantir Technologies thinks one type of buyer could introduce a new wave of demand for the crypto markets going forward. Joe Lonsdale says in a new interview with CNBC that artificial intelligence (AI) agents could rely on crypto as it expands across society.

Palantir Co-Founder Says One Type of Buyer Could Be Very Important for Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana

Bitcoin gained 3% overnight as investors look ahead to the U.S. Federal Reserve's announcement on interest rates Wednesday.

Bitcoin Gains 3%, Solana Up 6.9% Ahead of Jupiter Airdrops

Avalanche

Altcoins' consistent positive performance over the past six days is boosting optimism and setting up bitcoin to test $46,000, one analyst said.

SOL, AVAX Lead Crypto-Market Recovery, Bitcoin Tops 50-Day Average Before Fed Meeting

Solana prices surpassed $100 recently, breaking through this psychologically important level as the cryptocurrency extended its recent gains.

Solana Prices Break Through $100, Climbing 30% In A Week

A trader who nailed Bitcoin's (BTC) 2018 bear market bottom believes that one Ethereum (ETH) rival is poised for a big burst to the upside. Pseudonymous analyst Bluntz tells his 238,500 followers on the social media platform X that Solana (SOL) appears to have completed an ABC corrective wave.

Top Crypto Strategist Predicts Over 50% Rally for Ethereum Rival, Says One Low-Cap Altcoin Looks Amazing

WEN plunged 23% Monday after ending its airdrop campaign. Solana traders left $35 million worth of the meme coin on the table.

Solana Traders Send WEN on Wild Ride After $35 Million in Tokens Burned

The Blueprint collection, in collaboration with SuperTeamDAO, offers three free and random Bryan Johnson-themed collectibles.

Billionaire Biohacker Gets Into NFTs with Drip Solana Airdrop

Thanks to a generous airdrop campaign, a Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) memecoin called Wen (CRYPTO: WEN) exploded to more than $150 million in market capitalization within the first three days of trading. What Happened: Wen is currently being airdropped to over a million users, with the claim window open to users on Solana's Jupiter (CRYPTO: JUP) exchange, Solana Saga phone owners and owners of certain Solana-based NFT projects until the morning of Jan.30.

WEN On Solana Airdrops Its Way To A $150 Million Valuation, Trader Makes $1.6M Buying Early

The burn turned out to be a "sell the news event" as traders had already accounted for the purge – and then some.

Solana Meme Coin Wen Plummets Despite Burning 27% of Supply

Ethereum is under threat again from Solana following December's meme coin barrage, with JUP dropping soon.

Solana Flips Ethereum in DeFi Trading as Jupiter Airdrop Nears

NFT marketplace Magic Eden has launched a multi-chain wallet supporting the Solana, Polygon, Bitcoin and Ethereum blockchains.

Magic Eden launches multi-chain wallet for Solana, Bitcoin, Polygon and Ethereum

Increased activity in the Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) ecosystem boosted Solana's seven-day gains to 9%, rivaling volumes and the market cap figures of highly trending meme coins. What Happened: Hellomoon data indicates that new Solana addresses peaked at 10.13 million in January 2024, the second-highest number ever compared to the record set in May 2022 of 11.72 million addresses.

Solana Addresses Rocket Past 10M, Analyst Targets $140: 'Ready For Upward Continuation'

With hours left to go, about 60% of available WEN tokens—a new Solana meme coin—have been claimed by eligible wallets.

WEN Airdrop: 41% of Solana Meme Coin Still Unclaimed as Deadline Looms

A trader printed more than $1.6 million in gains after getting in early on one of the latest memecoin trends on the Solana (SOL) blockchain, on-chain data shows. First reported by blockchain tracking firm Lookonchain, one trader made huge profits going long on Wen (WEN), a memecoin built on Solana.

News for Solana Crypto (SOL)