Solana, the second-largest blockchain by Total Value Locked (TVL), has seen its ecosystem grow exponentially, driven by a rapid increase in the market value of its stablecoins.
Data from the decentralized finance (DeFi) analytics platform DefiLlama shows that the network’s stablecoin market cap had reached $10.7 billion at the time of writing.
Breaking Records
Previously, the highest collective value of all the stablecoins on Solana was about $6.259 billion, achieved in June 2022. Between December 2022 and January 2024, the metric stayed below the $2 billion level, as the blockchain’s biggest rival, Ethereum, enjoyed figures as high as $101 billion.
In that period, Justin Sun’s Tron also registered a higher market cap for its stablecoins, going from $31 billion in June 2022 to nearly $50 billion at the beginning of 2024.
While the two networks have maintained dominance, Solana’s recent growth is remarkable. In the last seven days, Ethereum and Tron’s stablecoin values went up by slightly more than 1%. Meanwhile, Anatoly Yakovenko’s platform skyrocketed by a massive 77.45%, going past the $10 billion mark and setting a new record in the process.
The blockchain’s technical capabilities are also being tested. It reportedly processes about 350 million transactions daily, generating $50 million in fees, which, when annualized, amount to $19.4 billion.
Unlike Tron and Ethereum, where the most dominant stablecoin is Tether, at 98.3% and 56.3%, respectively, Solana’s biggest stablecoin is USDC, representing 77.2% of the market cap. The ecosystem saw $3.75 billion worth of the token issued over the past week, bringing its total to $8.26 billion.
The value of USDT on the network is just slightly below $2 billion, with PayPal’s PYUSD a distant third at $150 million.
Meme Coin Mania Behind Solana’s Performance
According to analysts, the surge was driven primarily by meme coin trading pairs using USDC and USDT. It coincided with the launch of two tokens on the blockchain, one by U.S. President Donald Trump and another by First Lady Melania.
The Official Trump (TRUMP) coin was the talk of the town last weekend, reaching an eye-watering market cap of $15 billion and momentarily eclipsing Pepe and Shiba Inu to become the second-largest meme coin in the market. However, the introduction of Melania Meme (MELANIA) rained on TRUMP’s parade, causing the President’s token to lose half its value in just a few hours.
Right now, TRUMP is trading around the $36 level, with its $7.25 billion market cap placing it as the 29th largest cryptocurrency in the market. The other token is down 24% in the last 24 hours and is currently changing hands at $2.79.
Incidentally, the frenzy accompanying the launch of the two meme coins pushed SOL’s price by 18%, helping it reach a new all-time high of $270.
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