We may only be less than a week into the new year, but developments in the Solana blockchain have been one of the biggest stories so far. Following a December that saw them trading below double digits, the coin has hit a 40+% weekly surge to $13.50. The question remains, is 2023 truly a Solana Renaissance?
Not only has it fought through a rigid cryptocurrency winter but also contagion from the infamous collapse of crypto exchange FTX. Still, the year has started with a 50% increase in active users, which could be a sign of a resurgence. It may also simply be Solana “hopium” that comes with the optimistic perspective of a new year.
The FTX Conundrum
For any kind of return to favor for Solana, there was the necessity for the blockchain to weather the storm provided by FTX. It was the biggest financial disaster in crypto history and among the largest financial crimes ever recorded.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the mastermind behind the massive fraud case, was a known Solana supporter. Markets Insider detailed the Bankman-Fried-backed projects on the blockchain and the massive amounts of SOL he accumulated.
It was that contagion that resulted in the altcoin crashing 96% from its November 2021 high in that same report. Thereafter, eliminating tens of billions in market cap from the platform. Now, it has moved forward from that relationship, with a blog post assuring users that less than 1% of its cash or cash equivalents was on FTX.com prior to its demise. Moreover, there was no SOL in the custody of the exchange.
This assurance to their consumer base, along with quick action, has separated its fate from those of Gemini or Genesis, both boasting their own issues. Furthermore, the co-founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, Tweeted praise for his competitor. Stating that people he trusts have remarked to him about the “earnest smart developer community in Solana.”
Solana’s Bounceback into the New Year
Following its decimated price, Solana was quick to bounce back, with yesterday alone seeing a 15% increase in SOL. That development marked its sixth-straight session increase since the new year. Moreover, despite the price decline, 2022 relayed on-chain data that displayed continued growth throughout the year.
The network saw continued new addresses and monthly users all year despite slowed growth in Q4. Now, Solana has seen its daily active user base increase by 50% in January, according to Token Terminal. The question, however, is whether or not the renaissance is for real, or if “hopium” is at an all-time high.
The entire cryptocurrency market has seen momentum meet its start to 2023, with spikes in both competitors, Ethereum and Polygon, according to U.Today. Correspondingly, Solana’s growth is attributed to its impressive speed of transactions. Their website states their impressive block time of 400 milliseconds, with room to increase through upgraded networks and hardware. Moreover, the speed equates to a remarkable 2,804 transactions per second.
Whether or not Solana’s 2023 renaissance is sustainable is a question only time can answer. The festive hope of the new year could be propelling Solana, along with the industry, to a temporary height. How things level out remains the truest test.