Celebrate Solana’s 5th Anniversary While User Activity Declines!

The popular altcoin Solana $126 (SOL) marked its 5th anniversary recently. However, a notable decline in user activity on the network has raised concerns. The decrease in active wallet addresses is particularly attributed to the waning popularity of the memecoin platform Pump.fun. Additionally, the high-performance Solana client, Firedancer, developed by Jump Crypto, is expected to launch this year.

Solana’s 5th Anniversary in the Crypto Market

Solana celebrated its 5th anniversary on Sunday. Anatoly Yakovenko, one of the co-founders of the Solana Foundation, expressed his enthusiasm on social media with the phrase, “Happy Solana 0 block day.” Significant projects on the network, including Phantom Wallet and Pump.fun, also commemorated this milestone.

However, this milestone comes with a noteworthy decline in user activity over the past months. On-chain data indicates that the number of active wallet addresses on the Solana network has decreased monthly since reaching its peak in November 2024. Preliminary data suggests that March may yield an even lower count of active wallet addresses compared to February.

The Future of Solana with Firedancer

The next significant move for Solana will be the launch of the Firedancer client developed by Jump Crypto. Firedancer aims to enhance transaction speed and increase the network’s resilience against disruptions. In the development phase, the client was tested in September 2023 with a prototype called Frankendancer.

Initially planned for release in the second quarter of 2024, Firedancer is expected to be fully launched within this year. Mert Memtaz, co-founder of Helius, a prominent figure in the Solana community, indicated that Firedancer is anticipated to debut by the end of Q2. This upgrade is seen as crucial for reaching Solana’s goal of one million transactions per second.

Moreover, the potential inclusion of Solana in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is also under discussion. Numerous asset management firms have applied to the SEC for Solana-based ETFs. Experts believe that Solana is one of the strongest candidates for ETF approval alongside Litecoin, Dogecoin $0.168008, and XRP.

What is Solana?

Solana is a blockchain network that offers high speed and low transaction costs. Developed in 2019 by Anatoly Yakovenko, Solana stands out for its innovative consensus mechanism called Proof of History (PoH). Aiming to be faster and more scalable than Ethereum $1,937, Solana has become a popular network for DeFi, NFT, and memecoin projects.