Recently, the total staking value of Solana's native token SOL temporarily surpassed Ethereum's ETH, sparking intense debate in the industry about whether this is a positive signal or a potential risk. This article will analyze the essence and impact of this phenomenon from three dimensions: data, logic, and perspective.

One, Phenomenon Review: SOL staking exceeds $53.9 billion

According to blockchain data, there are currently over $53.9 billion worth of SOL in staking status on the Solana network, from 505,938 independent wallets, with an annualized staking yield rate of 8.31%.

According to data from Beaconcha.in, on April 20, 2024, the total staking value of SOL briefly surpassed the locked staking amount of Ethereum's ETH (approximately $53.93 billion).

It is worth noting that over the past two years, the price of SOL relative to ETH has increased nearly tenfold, making it a direct driving force behind this 'turnaround.'

Two, Positive Perspective: Strong signals from the Solana ecosystem

1. High user participation, strong on-chain lockup consensus
Over 500,000 wallets are participating in staking, reflecting the long-term bullish sentiment of the SOL community.

2. Price-driven yield incentives
An annualized yield of up to 8.31% is undoubtedly a significant draw for capital inflow, far exceeding Ethereum's 2.98%.

3. Network lockup ratio leads
Over 65% of tokens in SOL's total market cap are participating in staking, further enhancing network stability and resistance to attacks.

4. Future plans will strengthen security mechanisms
Solana Labs announced the launch of a 'correlation penalty' mechanism to enhance economic security and validator accountability.

Three, Potential Concerns: Is the ecosystem becoming 'hollowed out'?

1. High staking rates suppress DeFi activity
When the yield from 'risk-free staking' exceeds the yields from DeFi protocols like AMM, users naturally tend to choose the former, leading to passive 'blood loss' in the DeFi ecosystem.

2. Slow development of liquid staking
According to DeFiLlama data, liquid staking assets on Ethereum amount to as high as $21.5 billion, while Solana only stands at $7.22 billion, unable to form efficient capital reuse.

3. Disparity in the number of validators raises concerns about centralization
Ethereum has over 1.06 million validator nodes, while Solana has only 1,243, resulting in a significant gap in censorship resistance and distribution.

4. Penalty mechanisms are not yet mature
Current penalty measures are not automatically executed and can only manually restart the network to punish attackers; true economic security still needs improvement.

5. Does staking not 'protect the network'?
Ethereum researcher Dankrad Feist pointed out: 'The staking system of Solana lacks a rigorous penalty mechanism and does not effectively ensure security.'

Four, Solana vs Ethereum: The competitive logic behind the path divergence

Five, Practical Advice: How should maximization players and ordinary users choose?

For maximization users, focusing on non-staking projects or task platforms may be a more cost-effective choice. As a large amount of SOL is locked in staking, on-chain liquidity is relatively weak, and the opportunity window for truly participating in ecosystem projects is comparatively narrowed.

Recommended strategies for maximization:

  • Zealy (formerly Crew3) task platform: Supports many emerging public chains and projects, allowing users to earn XP points and whitelist opportunities by completing social and on-chain interaction tasks.

  • Galxe and other Web3 task platforms: Suitable for batch task completion and data accumulation, beneficial for capturing airdrops.

  • Participating in non-staking DeFi projects or NFT activities: Such projects often have tasks, rewards, and interaction records to attract funds and engage users.

Rather than 'locking' SOL into a stagnant staking pool, it is better to engage in a dynamic participatory ecosystem, with the potential for greater rewards during future airdrops or token launches.

Six, Conclusion: Under the prosperity of staking, how does the ecosystem continue?

The surge in Solana's staking market value is a direct reflection of its ecosystem users' consensus and the changes in token circulation structure, as well as a microcosm of the evolution of public chain competition. However, staking is not the end goal—only when funds are active, protocols are thriving, and developers continue to flow in can the vitality of the chain be truly validated.

In the next phase, the challenges for the SOL ecosystem will be:

  • How to transition from 'staking lockup' to 'ecological use'?

  • How to enable DeFi, GameFi, NFT, payments, and other fields to share financial dividends?

  • How to optimize economic security mechanisms and respond to external doubts?

True competition is not just about surpassing numerical values but rather a contest of ecosystem health.