Short version (one line): @Solayer brings shared security (restaking) to Solana, issues liquid restaking tokens, builds a high-speed hardware-accelerated Solana Virtual Machine (InfiniSVM), and adds an SVM-native bridge (sBridge) — all meant to make staked SOL and LSTs more useful across DeFi, at the cost of new complexity and risks.
1) What is Solayer? (plain English)
@Solayer is a project built for the Solana ecosystem. It lets people put SOL (or certain liquid staking tokens like mSOL, JitoSOL) to work twice: the tokens can still help secure Solana, and they can also be used to secure other services and high-performance apps. When you do this you usually get a new token that represents your restaked position (examples: sSOL or other liquid re-staking tokens). Solayer also builds InfiniSVM — a hardware-accelerated execution layer — and a bridge called sBridge to move assets fast between SVM chains.
2) The two main flows (simple)
a. Restaking — You stake native SOL (or approved LSTs) into Solayer. That stake is used to help secure third-party services — Active Validation Services (AVSs) or SVM apps — and you earn extra yield. In return you get protocol tokens that show your restaked position.
b. Liquid restaking — Instead of locking up SOL, you restake an LST (a liquid staking token). You keep a liquid token (so you can trade or use it in DeFi) while earning additional layered yield. These liquid restaking tokens (sometimes called LRTs or sSOL) are composable — they can be used as collateral, a yield source, or in AMMs and lending markets.
Net effect: capital efficiency — capital already securing Solana (or sitting in LSTs) now secures more services while staying liquid.
3) InfiniSVM — the performance angle (in plain words)
InfiniSVM is Solayer’s hardware-accelerated Solana Virtual Machine. The idea: instead of only relying on software, use hardware tricks (RDMA/InfiniBand, smart NICs, FPGA-style acceleration and software-defined networking) and a multi-executor model so the chain can process many more transactions and with lower latency. Solayer and partner writeups say their devnet has already shown hundreds of thousands of TPS and the architecture aims for up to ~1,000,000 TPS (this is a project target / claim — treat it as a vendor performance claim, not an industry fact). InfiniSVM is compatible with Solana tooling so existing Solana developers can migrate with less friction.
4) sBridge (SVM Bridge) — fast, SVM-native cross-chain transfers
Bridges move tokens between chains. sBridge (sometimes called SVM Bridge) is Solayer’s bridge made specifically for SVM chains (Solana + InfiniSVM + other SVM-compatible networks). It claims to use SVM semantics, PDAs, decentralized guardians/threshold signatures, and hardware-aligned proofs to make transfers low-latency and permissionless (no whitelisting). The goal is to move assets quickly and safely for high-frequency SVM workloads without detours through EVM chains. sBridge was rolled out publicly in late August 2025 (announcement/news coverage).
5) Token economy & key primitives (what you’ll actually see)
sSOL / LRTs: tokenized, yield-bearing representations of restaked positions. They aim to stay liquid so users can use them in DeFi.
sUSD and financial rails: Solayer describes a yield-bearing stablecoin called sUSD (backed by short-term Treasury bills in their docs) and more rails planned on top of restaking-secured infrastructure.
LAYER: governance / coordination token that aligns incentives, pays validators, and governs protocol parameters; Solayer Foundation announced the token and airdrop plans previously.
6) Why builders and DeFi teams might care
Shared security without new validator sets. Teams can get stronger economic backing using existing staked SOL instead of booting entirely new validator networks. That lowers the cost and time to claim strong security guarantees.
Composability for LRTs. Liquid restaking tokens create new building blocks — collateral for lending, liquidity for AMMs, or inputs for yield strategies.
A high-throughput playground. InfiniSVM aims to serve apps that need microsecond responsiveness and huge TPS (order-books, high-frequency markets, real-time oracles, trading AI). If real, this is a different product fit than most EVM rollups.
7) Practical use cases today (easy list)
High-performance DeFi: order-book DEXs, derivatives, and oracles that need low latency.
Cross-chain liquidity hubs: LRTs used as collateral across bridged markets via sBridge.
Yield optimization vaults: protocols programmatically move funds between LSTs and LRTs to capture layered yields.
8) Realistic risks — please read these carefully
Solayer increases capital efficiency, but that increases complexity and system risk. Major risks include:
Slashing & economic security: Restaking means you expose your stake to the slashing profile of the services you secure. Different AVSs may have different rules and loss modes — you must understand what you're securing.
Smart contract & bridge risk: Bridges and new contracts are frequent attack targets. Historically, bridges have been high-risk; research papers and audits show many design pitfalls. Even a purpose-built sBridge adds attack surface. Use caution and expect audits + bug bounties to matter.
Peg and liquidity risk for LRTs / sSOL: If markets panic or liquidity dries up, sSOL/LRT prices can deviate from the underlying value of locked stake. That can make them poor collateral in stress events.
Complexity for users and integrators: Multiple layers (stake → restake → LRT → DeFi) create UX and accounting complexity. Builders must educate users on failure modes and recovery flows.
Performance claims vs. reality: Hardware-acceleration and million-TPS targets are impressive claims from Solayer; treat them as vendor statements and verify with real benchmarks, independent tests, and devnet behavior.
9) Due diligence checklist (what you should check before interacting)
Read Solayer’s litepapers and dev docs (InfiniSVM, sBridge, sUSD). Confirm assumptions about slashing, validator selection, and reward distribution.
Check audits for the restaking contracts, sBridge, and sUSD. Look for recent third-party security reviews and open issues.
Verify devnet performance yourself: run test transactions, measure finality, and look at TPS under load. Don’t rely only on vendor claims.
Confirm liquidity for whatever LRT you’ll hold — depth on AMMs, lending pools, and historical peg behavior.
Understand governance and token economics for LAYER: allocation, token lockups, and how governance handles slashing compensations (if any).
10) Short FAQ (simple)
Q: Is restaking safe?
A: Restaking is not inherently safe or unsafe — it trades off higher yield and capital efficiency for added counterparty and protocol risk. Read slashing rules and contract terms.
Q: What happens if sBridge is attacked?
A: Bridge exploits can lead to lost funds or frozen transfers. sBridge claims hardware-backed proofs and guardian networks, but bridges remain a high-risk area — watch audits and multisig/guardian economics.
Q: Will InfiniSVM break DeFi?
A: “Break” is too strong. InfiniSVM could enable new real-time apps and industries (HFT, trading AI) if the performance claims hold. But ecosystem adoption, security, and developer tooling are the limiting factors.
11) How to get started (practical steps)
Read Solayer docs and litepapers. Start with Restaking 101 and InfiniSVM devnet guides.
Try the devnet: mint test sSOL/LRT on devnet, move tokens via sBridge testnets, and test DeFi flows.
Monitor third-party audits and community reviews (security firms, The Defiant, Binance research, Messari summaries).
12) Bottom line (plain speak)
Solayer is an ambitious, multi-piece project: restaking marketplace + liquid restaking tokens, a hardware-accelerated SVM (InfiniSVM), and a native SVM bridge (sBridge). If the technical claims hold and the security work is strong, Solayer could change how capital flows in the Solana ecosystem by turning staked assets into more useful, composable building blocks. But those gains come with real new risks — slashing exposure, bridge attack surface, peg instability, and greater system complexity. Do your homework: read the litepapers, test devnet, check audits, and never confuse vendor performance claims with independent proof.
Sources I used (major ones)
Solayer docs, InfiniSVM litepapers and devnet pages; Solayer sBridge docs and press releases; Binance research/square posts on Solayer; PR Newswire and The Defiant coverage; OKX & Gate overviews; sUSD docs; academic SoK on bridge risks. (See inline citations.)
