📚 How to Crypto Investor | Solana
There is a new Crypto Investor lesson, and today we will look closer at the Solana blockchain. Solana's ecosystem is growing faster than any other network. Some people even say that Solana is an "Ethereum killer".
However, the Solana blockchain is unique and promising, and it is worth any investor learning how to use it. So why not start just now?
What is Solana
Solana was created to solve scalability problems in Ethereum and BTC networks. The project began as an ICO in 2017 and evolved into a complete third-generation blockchain with several hundred thousand TPS bandwidth.
Solana developers use several new technologies to increase the network's speed, including the hybrid PoH/PoS consensus algorithm, new communication, and voting protocols. Read more about the technical aspect here.
It is important to understand that Solana has solved the critical problems of Ethereum - transaction fees and processing time. Solana supports smart contracts and is compatible with EVM.
So its ecosystem is rabbit-fast growing: NFT marketplaces, DeFi, stock exchanges, and P2E appear. Almost everything that you can find on Ethereum is already available on Solana.
Solana wallets
Phantom - is a noncustodial wallet that is available as a browser extension and mobile app for iOS and Android. It's like MetaMask but for Solana.
SolFlare Wallet - also noncustodial. There are more functions and possibilities than Phantom, like a built-in swap and staking.
TrustWallet - we mentioned it many times. The wallet supports the Solana network so that you can use all the advantages of that functional wallet app one more time.
DeFi and DEXs
Raydium - is an analog of Uniswap. There is everything that needs advanced investors: swaps, liquidity pools, and farming. It even supports the Wormhole bridge.
Serum - is at the same time DEX and the liquidity aggregator. The platform offers its AMM along with the other Solana sites.
Mango - is an exciting site. On that DEX, you can swap and trade spot assets and futures. Also, there's a lending platform.
NFT marketplaces
Metaplex - the site most for developers and artists. Here you can create not just jpegs but exciting NFT if you have little coding skills. Tools for building community and promotion are also available.
Solanaart - is a typical NFT marketplace. Connect a wallet, scroll, and buy.
Hyperspace - aggregator of NFT-collections where you can immediately buy a favorite. Informative, useful, functional.
❗️ The Solana network uses only one token standard - SPL. That is relevant for both fungible and nonfungible tokens. You can convert SPL tokens into tokens of other networks (and vice versa) via cross-chain bridges like a Wormhole or REN VM Bridge.
Why does Solana still not kill Ethereum?
Solana is not yet up to Ethereum in scale and ecosystem development. The main word here is "yet". Solana is rapidly evolving and will probably capture blockchain sectors where bandwidth and low fees are critically important.
At the same time, Solana's requirements for validator nodes are higher than in other blockchains. That increases the entry threshold and may negatively affect the Sokana decentralization. For example, Solana now has about 1,600 validators, with 19 leaders that verify transactions, and the ETH network has more than 6,000 nodes.