Based on my limited understanding of the financial industry, institutional funds entering the blockchain is not a one-time "purchase," but rather a complete migration of a "workflow." If Solana and Sui represent the ultimate pursuit of high performance in public chains, then Sei's goal goes even further: to provide the entire suite of workflows required by institutions while offering the same level of high performance. Therefore, when we position Sei as the "next Solana or Sui," it signifies not only speed but also the maturity of financial applications. For institutions, what they need is precisely such a closed loop that is observable, priceable, and distributable:
Observable means that infrastructure and data are transparent and auditable to the outside;
Priceable means that there are low-latency and authoritative data sources supporting trading and risk control;
Distributable means that compliant channels with traditional finance are being opened.
If the assets on-chain are a fog, with slow price updates, and cannot access mainstream compliant capital channels, then all stories about RWA and institutional adoption are just empty talk.
Sei's recent series of actions are seamlessly connecting these three major tasks on top of its low-latency execution layer.
First layer: Observable — Etherscan's native access makes everything transparent and verifiable
For any developer, auditor, or compliance team accustomed to the EVM ecosystem, Etherscan is their 'eye.' Without it, everything on-chain is like an unreadable black box. Now, Etherscan has launched Seiscan, bringing the most mature browser and API system of the Ethereum/EVM ecosystem natively to Sei.
What does this mean?
Unified industry standards: Developers and institutions no longer need to learn new, niche browsers. Contract verification, address tracking, token circulation, event logs—all of this can be done in a standardized interface that they have trusted for a decade.
Reduced communication and audit costs: When you discuss a transaction or a smart contract with an auditing firm or compliance department, you can directly send a Seiscan link, and they will understand it immediately. This greatly enhances communication efficiency.
Seamless migration of the EVM team: The powerful API system of Etherscan is natively available, meaning thousands of wallets, DeFi protocols, and analytics platforms that rely on its data can migrate or expand their workflows to Sei at a very low cost.
This is not just adding a tool; it lays a layer of recognized, transparent, and trustworthy 'observation layer' for Sei across the entire industry. To track its adoption, don't just look at daily active users, focus on the number of contract verifications, API call volumes, and the efficiency of project teams in problem identification.
Second layer: Priceable — Chainlink Data Streams provides a data foundation for high-frequency finance
Assets being observable is not enough; they must be priced in real-time and accurately. Especially for applications like lending, derivatives, and RWA that are extremely sensitive to price, delays and deviations of oracles can be fatal. Chainlink Data Streams has been integrated as Sei's preferred low-latency oracle, providing sub-second price feeds, liquidity-weighted bid-ask spreads, and a stable, highly available infrastructure; at the same time, with the advancement of Chainlink's collaboration with the U.S. Department of Commerce, BEA macro data (such as Real GDP, PCE, etc.) will be directly on-chain, providing authoritative benchmarks for RWA and institutional scenarios on Sei.
How is this different from regular oracles?
Sub-second latency: Data Streams does not provide price updates in minutes, but rather sub-second high-frequency price feeds. This is a qualitative leap for high-frequency trading and clearing engines.
More accurate market prices: It provides not only a single price point but also liquidity-weighted bid-ask spreads, which can more accurately reflect market depth and trading costs, providing higher quality inputs for risk control models.
Authoritative macro data: More importantly, Chainlink is bringing macro data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), such as real GDP and PCE price index, on-chain. This means that applications on Sei can directly link on-chain assets with the most authoritative macroeconomic indicators for pricing and risk management.
This is equivalent to equipping all financial applications on Sei with a 'high-frequency + authoritative' data engine. To measure its value, attention should be paid to the number of access protocols, end-to-end latency data, and the reduction in abnormal clearing rates due to improved data quality.
Third layer: Distributable — Staked SEI ETF, opening the door to compliant capital
With observable and priceable assets, the final step is to allow mainstream capital to buy in compliance. The SEC has officially acknowledged the application for the Staked SEI ETF, entering the public comment and review phase. According to regulatory procedures, S-1 and 19b-4 must pass simultaneously for listing. If ultimately realized, compliant buyer channels such as traditional brokerages and custodians, investment advisors, family offices, and certain retirement accounts (depending on jurisdiction) will be opened; the redemption mechanism and designated market makers are expected to improve the depth and spread of the secondary market. Combined with the compliant listing of European ETPs and the Japanese market, Sei's global distribution network will be more complete.
What does this mean?
It must be emphasized: acknowledgment does not equal approval. But its significance lies in the fact that Sei has already reached the threshold of pushing open the door to the mainstream capital market in the U.S. Once approved, it means that traditional brokerages, registered investment advisers, family offices, and even certain retirement accounts can compliantly allocate SEI and its staking yields through the ETF tools they are familiar with.
The redemption mechanism of the ETF and the participation of market makers will greatly improve SEI's depth and spread in traditional markets, forming a global compliant distribution network together with ETPs already listed in Europe and compliant tokens approved in Japan.
When the three layers come together
What Sei is doing is firmly building the three layers of institutional workflows—observable (Seiscan), priceable (Data Streams), and distributable (ETF channels)—on top of its low-latency execution layer.
Once this closed loop is running smoothly, it means a clear action path for different participants:
For developers: Complete contract verification on Seiscan, access high-quality data via Data Streams, and achieve cross-chain interoperability of assets using CCTP/CCIP.
For institutions and market makers: Use native USDC as the core settlement unit, closely monitor the approval process and liquidity data of ETFs/ETPs, and layout compliant channels.
When the three layers come together, a clear fact emerges: Sei is the preferred underlying public chain for stablecoins, RWA, and institutional-grade applications. Its story has shifted from mere speed competition to constructing a complete and trustworthy financial infrastructure for institutions. This path is harder but has a higher ceiling.
