Dispatch #184: The Solana Style in Crypto

Mar 23•4 min read

In this patch of your weekly Dispatch:

  • The Imminent halving ⏳
  • The All-important US News 🇺🇲
  • Wu-Tang Releases on Ordinals 🥷

The Big Idea

Is Solana Going Too Fast, Too Quickly?

Back in Dispatch #177 we saw it all aligning for Solana, calling it “a true soul in crypto.” Almost two months later, SOL turned traction into an upward movement to cross $200 for the first time since 2021. Delving deeper though, we find more impressive numbers and ultimately – The Big Idea behind Solana's ascent in the crypto market recently.

Still an Ethereum Killer? We do need to delve deeper to understand if Solana is deserving of that moniker. From the depths of DeFi:

  • Some way from its $260 ATH, SOL reached a new record market capitalization of $75B, according to CoinGecko data. Various metrics including network volumes, active wallets, total value locked (TVL), and fees reached lifetime peaks, DefiLlama shows.
  • The network received $3.2M in fees within 24 hours, surpassing its $300,000 record set in 2021. Onchain volumes also soared over $3B, eclipsing a November 2022 record of $300M.
  • Solana overtook Ethereum as the top smart-contract blockchain in trading volume: Solana-based decentralized exchanges surged by 67% to $21.3B, slightly surpassing Ethereum's $19.4B.

What’s behind these movements? If you’ve lost all communication for the past three months, we’re in a bull market and you know what that comes with: good ol’ memecoin mania. Hold your hat:

A healthy dose of rationale came from Solana Labs Co-Founder Anatoly Yakovenko, who shared his concerns about the influx of Solana-based meme coins and urged: “Stop doing this.” The significant amounts of SOL that flow into meme coin pre-sale contracts raise millions across the network, but also slow it down, hurting its main Ethereum-rivaling quality – speed. Are these simply growth pains? Is the memecoin frenzy truly beneficial? Stay tuned for that Big Idea too.

The Latest In…

Bitcoin: Beyond the ETFs

  • The eagerly awaited Bitcoin "halving" event is now expected less than a month away, signaling a quicker arrival than initially expected. The accelerated timeline is due to the interest in Bitcoin, prompting a surge in hashrate as mining companies deploy more powerful equipment. In other words – we’re mining hard now.
  • Standard Chartered boosted its year-end Bitcoin forecast to $150,000, with a cycle high of $250,000 expected next year. The bank sees BTC settling around $200,000, drawing comparisons to gold ETFs and anticipating potential overshoots.
  • JPMorgan's recent research refutes the notion of investors swapping gold for Bitcoin, stating that both assets have seen increased interest from both institutional and retail investors this year. The bank highlights significant inflows into Bitcoin ETFs alongside outflows from gold ETFs.

The Latest In…

Market Movers from the USA

  • Congressman McHenry and Senator Lummis are bullish on crypto legislation before November, media reports. With new House leadership, McHenry sees clear skies for bills like the Keep Innovation in America Act and Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act.
  • The U.S. Federal Reserve maintained interest rates at 5.25%-5.5%, aligning with market expectations this week. The projection for three cuts by year-end will see a base interest rate of 4.6%. Market expectations for a rate cut by June have increased to 70%, following the hotter-than-expected CPI and PPI reports.
  • Fed Chair Powell dismissed rumors of a secret CBDC project, stating there's no clandestine lab. While digital payments are a priority, Powell clarifies the Fed is exploring but not implementing a CBDC. The Fed's focus remains on monitoring digital finance's evolution, with no imminent CBDC plans.

The Latest In…

Hip-Hop OGs: “We Bitcoin OGs”

Legendary hip-hop band Wu-Tang Clan, led by founding member Ghostface Killah, are teaming up with Nakamotos on BTC to launch a collection of music-themed Ordinal Inscriptions. "We Bitcoin OGs," says Ghostface Killah, highlighting the partnership's roots in the crypto world. The collaboration aims to bring art and music to the blockchain, leveraging features introduced in the Ordinals protocol last year. This initiative showcases the increasing recognition of blockchain's effectiveness in preserving and distributing creative works.

The Week’s Most Interesting Data Story

It’s All about Momentum

Following Solana’s intense movements, this week’s data story presents The L1 Momentum Signal from Glassnode. This metric assesses whether an ecosystem is likely to enter a strong upward or downward trend. In true crypto fashion, It’s all highly dynamic, especially so with Solana.

Hot Topics

What the Community Is Discussing

We aren’t giving up hope just yet, you know…

All eyes on Vitalik yet again.

And it ain’t the only new asset on Nexo this week!

What to Watch for Next Week:

  • The Bitcoin Emoji – How far have we gone?
  • Ehtereum ETFs – What’s stopping shem?
  • Bitcoin Halving – Are miners ready?