Once, when I was swiping my card at a convenience store, the cashier looked at my Visa card and suddenly said, 'Why is your card so heavy? Can it be used as a brick to smash walnuts?' I was stunned and thought: This card can buy cola, but it really has no other superpowers. But if you have Solayer’s Emerald Card, perhaps you can experience a bit of 'superpower'—after all, who doesn’t want to earn interest on US Treasury bonds while using crypto assets to buy milk tea?
Now that we are here, are you a bit curious about what this Emerald Card, sUSD, and the 'unlimited hardware acceleration' behind Solayer actually are? Today, I’ll use soft-core popular science to take you on a journey to explore this and also discuss how crypto finance has evolved from 'brick cards' to 'borderless payments.' Let’s dive in! ⬇️
1 Solayer: The player that equips Solana with 'rocket boosters.'
Remember when you played Red Alert as a kid? When the base upgraded, tanks could be produced quickly? Solayer’s InfiniSVM is somewhat similar; it upgrades the Solana ecosystem with 'hardware add-ons.' What’s the deal? Isn’t blockchain already fast? Why the need for acceleration?
// Let’s start with a metaphor: Solana is like a highway that gets congested when there are too many cars; Solayer is like installing super gas stations and multiple new lanes by the roadside, aiming to handle 1 million transactions per second (TPS), just as smooth as during the peak travel season without traffic jams.
Technically, Solayer accelerates with hardware (like FPGA, ASIC, you know what I mean) while also reconstructing the protocol, like upgrading a racing car, not only changing the engine but also the tires. This way, both developers and users can enjoy a faster, safer, and more 'blast-resistant' on-chain experience.
My bias: In the blockchain world, speed is productivity. Whoever can keep the 'yield farmers' from lagging can harvest a wave of new users.
2️⃣ sUSD: The 'Treasury bond-linked version' of on-chain US dollars, where earning interest can be quite smooth.
Speaking of stablecoins, the most familiar ones might be USDT/USDC, but sUSD is a bit different—it is directly linked to US Treasury bonds, with an annualized rate of 4%, touted as the 'on-chain yield farming artifact.' What’s the difference from traditional wealth management?
// To put it simply: traditional bank wealth management is like putting money in a bank, where the bank says, 'I’ll help you buy some government bonds, and you’ll get dividends at the end of the year,' but you have to wait a year. sUSD is like directly buying 'digital government bonds,' which you can access anytime and can circulate on-chain, with transparent and visible returns.
Moreover, sUSD can also cross chains; for example, it has recently expanded to the Base chain, achieving 'multi-chain travel' through Wormhole NTT, just like your balance can be transferred freely between different banks without worrying about traffic jams or explosive fees.
My bias: In the second half of the stablecoin competition, what matters is compliance and yield. sUSD’s 'Treasury bond + on-chain' operation indeed has something to it.
3 Emerald Card: A card that connects on-chain and reality; can it really earn money for milk tea?
The Emerald Card is the on-chain Visa card of the Solayer ecosystem. On the surface, it looks no different from an ordinary credit card, but there are many more tricks behind it: depositing USDC can earn 4% Treasury bond returns, using the card can earn crypto rewards, and occasionally there are partner airdrops (like Nubit sending BTC, Nansen discount coupons), making it a new favorite for 'yield farmers.'
// Life analogy: When you usually use Alipay/WeChat Pay, your money in the bank can only earn interest; using the Emerald Card is like earning while saving, plus you can swipe globally, and occasionally you can get 'blind box' rewards.
Of course, the reality is that not all merchants support crypto payments, but the Emerald Card seamlessly exchanges crypto assets for fiat currency, so when you buy coffee, it’s actually 'moving bricks on-chain' in the background; you don’t have to worry about anything.
My bias: For crypto payments to enter everyday life, cards are a good entry point, but user experience and compliance issues must be tackled gradually.
4 Unlimited hardware acceleration: The 'overclocking player' of blockchain, but will it overheat?
‘Unlimited hardware acceleration’ sounds impressive; it actually uses specialized chips and protocol optimization to break the performance ceiling of the chain. Imagine your home computer lagging while gaming; after installing a graphics card fan and overclocking, the graphics quality skyrockets.
// But here’s the question: Will hardware acceleration cause the blockchain to 'overheat'? Will security and decentralization be affected? Solayer’s approach is 'soft and hard integration,' which enhances performance while ensuring SVM compatibility and security, ideally achieving 'both fish and bear's paw.'
My bias: Technological upgrades are always a double-edged sword; while performance improves, security and decentralization cannot lag behind, or it will become a 'centralized mega miner.'
5 The future of the Solayer ecosystem: Can Web3’s 'card organization' make a comeback?
Imagine a future Web3 world where traditional card organizations like Visa/MasterCard might be replaced by on-chain solutions like Solayer? sUSD becomes the mainstream on-chain dollar, and the Emerald Card becomes the standard for young people globally, with yield farmers spending while earning, and developers using InfiniSVM to create various new plays.
// Of course, reality may not be so beautiful—regulation, compliance, user education, hacking attacks, each step feels like leveling up against monsters. But who says the crypto world can’t have a bit of idealism?
My bias: The revolution of financial infrastructure in Web3 has just begun; Solayer is just the 'first screw,' with countless players waiting to enter the stage.
This is a soft-core popular science article, through which you can gain a basic understanding of the following knowledge:
How Solayer uses hardware acceleration and protocol innovation to enhance on-chain TPS
What yield opportunities are behind the 'Treasury bond yield' mechanism of sUSD?
How the Emerald Card connects on-chain assets with real-world consumption (and whether milk tea money can really be earned back)
'Yield farmers' do not equal 'harvesters' (not)
