TL;DR:
- SOL, the native token powering the Solana blockchain, has gained over 11% overnight, primarily fueled by the upcoming migration of the Helium network to Solana and a sharp increase in the Solana-based NFT trading volumes.
- The migration is expected to happen next month on March 27, and it’s anticipated that Helium developers can focus on adding more hotspots rather than maintaining the blockchain.
- Despite Solana’s recent success, it’s still down 89.81% from its historical all-time high of $259.96 in November 2021.
Solana’s rise and fall….and rise
Solana is the second-largest smart-contract network behind Ethereum, with its native token, SOL, experiencing a double-digit recovery recently. SOL’s 11% gain overnight is fueled primarily by the upcoming migration of the Helium network to Solana and a sharp increase in the Solana-based NFT trading volumes. However, despite its recent gains, SOL is still down 89.81% from its all-time high of $259.96 in November 2021.
The migration of Helium network to Solana is expected to happen next month on March 27. Helium, established in 2019, is a decentralized network of devices called “hotspots” that provides long-range connectivity for IoT devices. By merging with Solana, Helium developers can focus on adding more hotspots rather than maintaining the blockchain, which will further enhance its scalability and speed, making it a more robust blockchain. Additionally, Solana’s massive ecosystem of developers, applications, and integrations can cater to Helium’s requirements, further benefiting both platforms.
Helium and Solana
Helium is a decentralized wireless network that enables IoT devices to communicate with each other and with the internet. It achieves this by using a unique incentive mechanism to encourage people to operate and maintain small, low-power, wireless hotspots that serve as network nodes. The hotspots use a combination of LoRaWAN (Low Range Wide Area Network) technology and blockchain to provide secure, long-range, and low-bandwidth communication for IoT devices.
The move of Helium to Solana is a significant development for both networks. Helium’s migration to Solana will enable it to leverage the latter’s high-speed and scalable blockchain to process more transactions and to scale its operations. Solana’s ability to power thousands of transactions per second and its vast ecosystem of developers, applications, and integrations make it an ideal choice for Helium.
The integration of Helium’s wireless network with Solana’s blockchain infrastructure will create new opportunities for developers and entrepreneurs to build innovative solutions for the IoT market. It will also enable Solana to expand its reach into the IoT space, which is poised for significant growth in the coming years. By integrating with Helium, Solana will be able to offer new use cases and applications that require IoT connectivity, such as supply chain management, asset tracking, and smart cities.
Setbacks be damned
The sharp increase in Solana-based NFT trading volumes is contributing to SOL’s rise. Solana-based NFT sales have grown by 12.68% in the last 24 hours to $2.63 million, while Ethereum-based NFT sales have plummeted by 10.57%. This growth in NFT sales can be attributed to Solana’s fast transaction processing speed and low fees.
Despite Solana’s recent success, it suffered a massive setback in November 2022 when the FTX exchange collapsed, causing Solana’s market capitalization to fall below $10 billion. The chain’s dependence on a single exchange highlights the importance of diversification and developing a robust ecosystem of exchanges and partners.
To change the luck of the Solana chain, it needs to focus on three key areas:
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Diversification of partnerships: Solana needs to expand its partnerships beyond a single exchange to increase its liquidity and decrease the risk of market volatility.
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Enhancing the ecosystem: Solana should work on enhancing its ecosystem of developers, applications, and integrations to cater to the diverse requirements of its users.
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Increasing awareness: Solana must increase awareness of its capabilities and unique features, such as fast transaction processing speeds and low fees, to attract more users and increase its market share.
Solana’s rise and fall highlight the importance of diversification and building a robust ecosystem of partners and applications. The upcoming Helium migration and sharp increase in Solana-based NFT trading volumes are positive developments for the chain, and it needs to capitalize on these opportunities by focusing on diversification, ecosystem enhancement, and increasing awareness of its capabilities.
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