As of January 21, 2025, Solana has seen a massive surge in its decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volume, reaching $120.6 billion—a 323.3% increase in just seven days.
This growth has led analysts to question whether Solana can surpass Ethereum and become the leading Layer 1 blockchain in 2025.
Ethereum’s DEX Activity
Ethereum’s weekly DEX trading volume also saw a boost, reaching $24.7 billion, up by 47.58%. However, most of Ethereum’s growth came from Uniswap, which accounted for over 73.7% of the trading volume.
This contrasts with Solana, where Raydium, its top DEX, saw a 236% increase, handling $52 billion in volume last week. This shift suggests Solana is gaining more attention from DEX traders, according to analyst Knox Ridley.
Solana’s Technological Edge
Solana’s unique “proof of history” (PoH) protocol allows it to process up to 65,000 transactions per second (TPS) without relying on second-layer solutions. This gives it a significant advantage over Ethereum’s proof of stake (PoS) protocol, which can handle a maximum of 62.34 TPS.
Solana’s new Firedancer update, developed by Jump Crypto, aims to enhance scalability and improve security, making it a stronger contender to Ethereum, particularly in applications that require speed and efficiency.
Solana’s Growing Stablecoin Market
Solana’s stablecoin infrastructure is also gaining momentum. While Ethereum still leads in stablecoins, Solana’s stablecoin market cap grew by 67.48%, reaching $9.8 billion as of January 21, 2025. This growth positions Solana as a strong competitor in the space.
Volume-to-Market Cap Ratio
Solana’s volume-to-market cap ratio stands at 13.13%, suggesting a higher trading activity compared to Ethereum’s 10%. This indicates that Solana is experiencing faster growth in terms of trading volume relative to its market cap, further supporting its rise.
Future Outlook
Analysts, including those from Bitwise Europe, predict that Solana’s price could increase by 3,000% by 2030, marking what they call an “iPhone moment” for the blockchain. This could propel Solana ahead of Ethereum in 2025, as it continues to attract more attention and activity.
