Solana is an altcoin that has taken the crypto world by storm. You might have probably not heard of it. But here we are.
The cryptocurrency SOL, has a connection to the Solana network of blockchains. It recently climbed into the top 10 most valuable cryptocurrencies globally.
This was due to optimism that their blockchain infrastructure could be a long-term competitor for Ethereum.
The Solana token market tripled its value in a matter of weeks. And the price is continuing to rise due to faster transaction speeds and lower costs.
This has grown optimism among decentralized financial platforms (DeFi) and digital collectibles. The areas where Ethereum dominates.
What is Solana
Solana is an innovative blockchain network that develops products and services powered by cryptocurrency.
It is like Ethereum in functionality. Yet, differs by offering faster transaction times, lower fees, and more flexible programming.
Solana is capable of handling more transactions than both Ethereum and Bitcoin. It’s also affordable, and supports over 50 programming languages. Thus, easy for developers to use.
SOL, is the payment currency for running programs and sending transactions.
So Solana is not for the payments?
So, like stocks in the tech, oil and gas sectors work differently than each other. Cryptocurrencies do different things too! The term cryptocurrency is confusing because we have a preconceived idea of what it can or cannot do.
Some cryptocurrencies have a very different goal than what we might expect. And only a small number of them aim to replace the ZAR or USD that we use today.
Cryptocurrencies are usually designed for a particular function. For instance, Bitcoin or Litecoin are an alternative payment system and value storage.
Or, like Ethereum or Solana, they can be more open and general in how they work. This means that these platforms are very versatile because they have a wide range of uses.
DApps, which are basically blockchain-based versions of regular apps like the ones you get on your phone, can be built upon these networks and offer even more opportunities.
What Makes Solana Outstanding
Built to scale
Solana is fast, currently executing over 50 000 transactions per second. In comparison, Bitcoin and Ethereum only process five and 15 TPS, respectively.
Visa’s payments network processes over 1700 transactions a second on average. The goal of these new systems is to create faster processing times. And allow users more control in managing their money by using decentralized apps.
Ultra-Low Fees
Solana charges much lower fees compared to most similar blockchain networks today. For example, transactions on Ethereum cost 200x more than what you’d pay for the same transaction on Solana!
Ecosystem Growth
Solana’s blockchain ecosystem has snowballed over the past few months. The company now sees 181 projects, and its total value locked in smart contracts has reached $3,500 million.
Solana’s performance
Solana has been on a roll recently, partially due to the hype around NFTs being built on their network.
NFTs (Non-Fungible token)
Fungibility is a term that means replaceable items or objects.
Non-fungible things are unique and cannot be replaced with such things as collectibles cards or the painting Mona Lisa.
A non-fungible token is a digital asset that represents something unique, such as an item of clothing or even crypto kitties.
NFTs are significantly different from fungible tokens because they can be exchanged for other things in the same category but will not return the exact object you started with.
The NFT market took off in 2021, with more than 30 times the sales of 2020. Blockchain networks facilitating these transactions have received increased attention due to their exponential growth!
Is Solana Still a Good Investment?
Think of the current market as a generational buying moment for an emerging asset class or a speculative bubble.
When it comes to investing, diversification is smart. Without giving investment advice, research the future of Solana and smart contracts for yourself.
If you are looking for a blockchain project with excellent prospects, Solana might be the one.
Where to buy Solana?
Starting on September 10th, Revix will offer Solana as a standalone cryptocurrency investment option. During the promotion period, you can invest in this token for free!