Solana Receives Endorsement from Payment Giants Post PayPal USD Launch

After the launch of PayPal USD stablecoin, Solana is emerging as a leading blockchain for payment giants. Speculation about a Solana ETF has surged, driven by endorsements from major payment entities.

Solana, the fourth-largest blockchain by Total Value Locked (TVL), is actively forging relationships with traditional financial institutions to enhance crypto adoption.

Robinson Burkey, co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Wormhole Foundation, noted growing integration of Solana blockchain technology by financial institutions to "future-proof" their services. Burkey shared in a research note with Cointelegraph:

"Industry leaders like PayPal, Stripe, and Visa need to future-proof their services. The best way to do that is to engage with the most forward-thinking users on the platforms they are adopting. Expect more organized events from Solana in the coming years."

On May 28th, PayPal officially launched the PayPal USD (PYUSD) stablecoin on the Solana network, marking its first step outside the Ethereum ecosystem. This integration allows Solana users to transact with lower fees using PYUSD, expanding the utility of the stablecoin for daily commerce on the platform.

In September 2023, global payment giant Visa also tested the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin on the Solana blockchain, making it the second network to support stablecoins after Ethereum.

Fireblocks: Solana Set to Gain More Institutional Approval

Solana continues to rank at the top for scalability and transaction throughput, theoretically capable of processing up to 65,000 transactions per second (TPS) with an average transaction fee of $0.0025 USD, far surpassing Ethereum's 15 TPS and significantly lower gas fees, which can spike to $50 USD during network congestion.

Ran Goldi, Vice President of Payments at Fireblocks, highlighted Solana's infrastructure as easily integrable for traditional payment institutions. He stated:

"It's crucial that your blockchain can support 'anonymous' payment requirements while complying with regulations and ensuring user privacy."

Goldi believes that adding private transaction capabilities could open more doors for Solana in collaborating with traditional financial institutions.

According to DefiLlama data, Solana currently ranks fourth with a TVL of over $4.7 billion USD, capturing 4.49% of the total TVL across all blockchains.

Could Solana be the Third ETF to Launch?

Aside from increasing institutional adoption, Tristan Frizza, founder of Zeta Markets, speculated that Solana could be the next cryptocurrency to receive approval for a spot ETF. Frizza commented:

"Solana is considered one of the top three cryptocurrencies alongside BTC and ETH, with many analysts expecting a Solana ETF to launch soon. With major partnerships like Visa, Stripe, Shopify Pay, and PayPal, merchants and organizations can increasingly leverage Solana."

Expectations for a Solana ETF were bolstered earlier this year when asset management giant Franklin Templeton praised Solana for its single atomic approach to blockchain scalability, calling it a "powerful application of decentralized blockchain."

Brian Kelly, host of CNBC's Fast Money, also speculated that Solana could be the next cryptocurrency to gain approval for a spot ETF in the United States.

Currently, SOL is trading around $173 USD, marking a 4% increase in the last 24 hours.

[Chart] 1-hour SOL/USDT pair on Binance at 11:45 AM on June 5, 2024