Blockchain has substantially evolved over the years, but issues like scalability and affordability have been brought up multiple times. In 2020 a new blockchain called Solana was born. Its goal? Fast and affordable transactions. At first it sounded unrealistic and idealistic, but as soon as the blockchain started working, everyone believed.

Today, SOL is one of the most popular crypto assets on the market. Everyone, especially retail, has adopted it widely. In this blog post, let’s explore why Solana has been such a trending topic and why it still will be in the coming weeks and months.

A need for speed

Since the dawn of human times, or at least since blockchain technology became mainstream, there has always been demand for a fast and cheap network that anyone could use without excluding users based on the size of their wallet.

Solana was founded in 2017 by Anatoly Yakovenko, a former engineer at Qualcomm. He had a vision for a blockchain as fast as the modern internet apps.

In March of 2020 the Solana mainnet launched. Its promise of swift transactions was delivered, and the network quickly gained traction. In the last year, it has become the hub of DeFi, airdrops, and memecoins.

Why is Solana so fast and cheap?

Proof of History

Solana’s success is mostly dependent on the new consensus mechanism called Proof of History (PoH). Let’s break it down.

The majority of blockchains need all their nodes to communicate with each other on what happened and when. In comparison, Solana developed an innovative approach where a timestamp is created for every event so that everything is crystal clear.

Thanks to this specific method, Solana is able to process more than 65,000 transactions per second—yes, per second. To put this into perspective, Ethereum can handle around 15. This is what makes Solana great for efficient and high-speed dApps.

Invisible fees

What’s better is that the network itself is incredibly cheap to use. A single transaction costs a fraction of a cent, making it affordable for anyone. Doesn’t matter who you are or what you do; the blockchain doesn’t limit you in any way, shape, or form—the costs are so low you probably might not even notice them.

Usage fees for the most popular networks compared to SOL. Average fees as of Nov 12, 2024.

Meme culture on Solana

We are probably past the point when we even care about technology. Solana is a gambling den where you can experience life-changing gains and devastating losses—depending purely on your choices. At its core, this environment has become a reflection of our broader relationship with technology: driven more by the desire for instant gratification and financial gain than by any deeper understanding or ethical consideration of its impact.

Memes shaping new narratives

Memes in particular have become more and more influential. They shape narratives and influence human behavior. In crypto especially, think how many of these memes can send the price of a token straight to the moon. These days, tokens that survive follow trends and are the foundations on which everlasting communities are built.

Nothing is perfect

As incredible as Solana is, it’s not perfect. The network has had its fair share of fiascos, including multiple outages when it went offline for a few hours because it just couldn’t keep up with processing all the transactions. While the speed is impressive, although prone to failures, one could argue that the network sacrifices decentralization.

Then we should realize there are a ton of competitors, each fighting for its fair share of the market. Every blockchain has its strengths and weaknesses—Solana is no different.

Close to dying

Solana experienced a massive crash in the year of 2022 due to its connections to the FTX exchange. FTX was once the second largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world as well as an early backer of Solana. Many of FTX’s ventures and projects were built on the SOL blockchain, and the exchange founder was a vocal advocate for Solana.

Solana's epic comeback

The FTX collapse paralyzed and shocked the entire industry, and Solana caught on fire. It saw a sharp drop in the value of the SOL token because FTX was rumored to liquidate its Solana holdings. Many lost faith and thought the blockchain was doomed to fail. Yet in the following months, Solana demonstrated extreme resilience and proved it was independent of any single backer.

After the FTX exchange collapsed, Solana was down 95% from ATH. The price went as low as $8.

Powerful Solana ecosystem

Degens throwing their money on memecoins is not the only experience you may observe. Solana offers so much more.

One wallet for everything

Phantom is the flagship wallet of Solana, but also a tool you can’t go without. Its sleek design and smooth user experience are what made it a convincing choice for retail investors who want to interact with dApps and manage their NFTs without an effort.

Swapping fast, really fast

Another essential part of the ecosystem is Jupiter, a decentralized exchange aggregator, which makes trading on Solana so simple anyone can do it. Jupiter always ensures you get the best rate for your tokens whenever you swap while maintaining the fast and low-cost experience Solana is well known for.

Airdrops on Solana

Isn’t getting free money a fantasy many dream of? You wake up, check your wallet, and find free tokens waiting for you. This is basically how airdrops work. The money is technically not “free”—airdrops reward  early supporters with a portion of the tokens, meaning you need to be an active community member. Crypto airdrops have become a way to turn pocket money into tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars. Many airdrops have been notoriously exploited by bots pretending to be real users.

Airdrops are a great way of saying thank you to loyal and valuable community members.

The first Web3 mobile phone

With the release of the Saga Phone, Solana seems to be aiming a lot higher. The device offers direct access to everything you need to navigate in crypto—wallets or dApps. You can do everything on there, from swapping tokens to managing NFTs.

It’s about making Web3 as easy as sending a text or scrolling through social media. Solana is betting big on the idea that one day, interacting with blockchain won’t feel like “crypto” at all—it’ll just feel normal. Saga is that first step.

How to buy and store SOL

To buy Solana, you’ll need a platform that supports cryptocurrency purchases. For instance, Swapped.com offers several payment methods—Apple Pay, Google Pay, credit cards, Skrill, and bank transfer—making it quick and easy to buy SOL, which is delivered within minutes.

• Buying: Purchase SOL easily with Swapped.com. Just make sure you have funds available and choose a payment method, such as a credit card or bank account.

• Storing: You can store SOL in a crypto wallet, either online or on a physical device called a hardware wallet. Hardware wallets add extra security by keeping your SOL offline.

The future of Solana

Solana isn’t for everyone. Stability and slow growth are not its core features—you may as well look somewhere else. If you thrive in chaos, love memes, and are a risk-taker, Solana might just feel like home.

Shaping the future is what Solana strives for. Think of a world where your bank or even your social media accounts are on the blockchain. It’s all about simplifying and making decentralized apps as easy to use as the ones we use today. Solana is a name worth knowing—fast and ready to take over. Are you ready to join?