According to CoinDesk, Solana (SOL) has experienced a significant turnaround in 2022, with its SOL token now trading above $100 for the first time since early 2022. With a market capitalization of $47 billion, it has become the fifth-biggest cryptocurrency, even briefly ranking as the fourth-biggest earlier this week. Solana's blockchain has been touted as a cheaper and faster alternative to Ethereum (ETH) for handling transactions and supporting decentralized finance (DeFi) and other smart contract-powered activities.
Solana-based decentralized exchanges are approaching Uniswap's multibillion-dollar trading volumes for the first time, according to DefiLlama. This surge in activity is driven by speculation, with dog-themed meme coins being among the most popular crypto assets traded on Solana. Airdrops have also encouraged traders to explore Solana-based lenders, bridges, and other infrastructure. Ethereum remains the leader among layer-1 blockchains capable of running smart contracts, with $29 billion of total value locked, compared to Solana's $1.5 billion, as per DefiLlama data. However, recent events indicate that Solana may now be a serious competitor in the space.
In other news, former customers of Mt. Gox, which suffered a massive hack a decade ago, are starting to receive repayments. The incident, which saw 850,000 bitcoins stolen, worth about $36 billion today, highlighted the need for better infrastructure in the crypto industry. UBS had previously reported that the repayment process could impact bitcoin prices but would not destabilize the market.
