What is Solana (SOL)?

Solana is an extremely high-performance blockchain known for its immense speed and extremely low transaction fees. It is often referred to as one of the strongest "Ethereum killers" as it is designed to solve Ethereum's scaling issues. The native currency of the network is SOL.

  • High Throughput: Solana can theoretically process tens of thousands of transactions per second (TPS), compared to Ethereum's ~15 TPS.
  • Low Costs: Transactions typically cost a fraction of a cent, making the platform ideal for high-volume applications like gaming, DeFi, and trading memecoins.
  • Growing Ecosystem: Despite setbacks, Solana has one of the most active and innovative developer communities in the crypto space.

How Does Solana Work? The Secret to its Speed

Solana's key innovation is Proof-of-History (PoH). This is not a consensus mechanism like Proof-of-Stake, but a kind of cryptographic clock that timestamps transactions *before* they are sent to the network.

  1. PoH creates a verifiable, chronological sequence of events.
  2. Validators no longer need to spend a long time agreeing on the order in which transactions occurred. They can trust the "clock".
  3. This timestamp is then used in combination with the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) mechanism to secure the network.

This combination allows the network to process transactions in parallel, achieving its market-leading speed.

Why is This Important?

Solana has established itself as one of the most important platforms for consumer applications where speed and low costs are crucial.

  • The Capital of Memecoins: Due to low fees, Solana became the preferred platform for trading memecoins during the 2023/2024 hype.
  • Strong NFT Ecosystem: With marketplaces like Magic Eden, Solana has built a vibrant and affordable NFT ecosystem.
  • The Comeback King: After the collapse of the FTX exchange, which was closely linked to Solana, the project was written off by many. Its strong comeback has proven the resilience of the network and its community.

How can I buy this coin?

The process for buying SOL or other established cryptocurrencies is always very similar. We have explained the easiest method for you step-by-step in our Start Guide.

Milestones of Solana

The Whitepaper

Anatoly Yakovenko publishes the concept of Proof-of-History, the technological foundation for Solana's speed.

Mainnet Beta Launch

The Solana network goes live and begins to prove its capabilities under real-world conditions.

"Solana Summer"

A period of explosive growth where the price of SOL and activity in the ecosystem skyrocketed.

The FTX Collapse

Due to its close ties to the FTX crypto exchange, Solana is hit hard. The price of SOL plummets, and many consider the project to be finished.

The Great Comeback

Led by community projects like the memecoin BONK and strong developer activity, Solana experiences an impressive resurgence.

Common Myths about Solana

Myth: "Solana is centralized."

Fact: Solana has fewer validators than Ethereum, which draws criticism. However, the number is steadily growing, and the network is not controlled by a single entity. The high hardware requirements remain a valid point of critique.

Myth: "Solana is always down."

Fact: In its early phase, Solana had several high-profile network outages. However, numerous upgrades have made the network significantly more stable and reliable today.

Debunk all myths