The Solana blockchain network has achieved a significant milestone by surpassing Ethereum in daily revenue, demonstrating the ongoing dynamism in the cryptocurrency industry. This noteworthy event occurred on May 12th when Solana’s total revenues, including transaction fees and Maximal Extractable Value (MEV), exceeded those of Ethereum, reaching approximately US$2.25 million compared to US$1.98 million.
The Solana community widely celebrated this achievement, with many interpreting it as a sign that the network could soon surpass Ethereum in other areas as well. Joe McCann, the founder of Asymmetric, commented on the event, stating, “For the first time, Solana recently surpassed Ethereum in daily economic value.” He also highlighted the difference in market value between the two cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that Solana is valued at only one-fifth of Ethereum.
In addition, Ansem, a prominent influencer and marketer, drew attention to Solana’s cost efficiency, tweeting, “[Solana] is still 100 times cheaper for users to transact.” He posed questions to the Ethereum community, challenging the justification for its high market valuation.
However, not everyone agrees with this direct comparison. Leon Waidmann, an analyst at BTC-Echo, pointed out flaws in the comparison, noting that the data does not take into account the Ethereum Layer 2 ecosystem. He stated, “It is crucial to remember that this comparison only includes the Ethereum main chain, without accounting for the value of ETH as a payment method and transaction fuel for various Layer 2 networks.” This indicates that the analysis underestimates Ethereum’s contribution.
Despite the celebration, Solana fees have experienced a significant increase, coinciding with periods of high network congestion. This congestion has resulted in transaction execution failures, with over 60% of transactions failing in the last month, according to data from Dune Analytics.
Non-voting priority fees have become a growing part of Solana’s transaction revenue, significantly contributing to overall revenue growth. These fees allow users to prioritize their transactions, ensuring execution even during times of high demand.
Although Solana has recently achieved success in terms of revenue, Ethereum continues to dominate in several key metrics such as decentralized exchange volume and total value locked in DeFi. Recent data indicates that Ethereum maintains a substantial advantage over Solana in these areas, solidifying its position as a leader in various aspects within the web3 space.
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