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The growing demand for bitcoin has triggered a rally in one of its biggest competitors, Solana. Although SOL is often referred to as 'Ethereum Killer' for the close competence the cryptocurrencies follow, the recent trend of Solana might give it a heads up in 2022 and make it a 'Bitcoin Killer'. If the trend befalls beyond 2022 into the future, then Solana has a high chance of taking over the top two cryptocurrencies.
Solana price has recorded a whopping 17,000% growth in 2021 alone, making it the fourth-largest cryptocurrency in the top 10 list. But SOL didn't make it to to the top just like that. It gradually rose through the ranks of altcoins to capture its currency place. Solana began the year at US$1.5, which now rose to nearly US$260. The digital token is now valued at US$64 billion with much-anticipated developments on its way. Besides, Solana's technology makes it very competitive compared to the market leaders, Bitcoin and Ethereum. Although the market trend has labeled Solana as highly volatile with risk factors, its incredible growth is making investors think otherwise. On the other hand, Ethereum is also doing well in the market. Unfortunately, it can't be a direct 'Bitcoin Killer' since ETHER's trend mostly follows the footprint of BTC. Therefore, experts predict that Solana will give a tough competition to both ethereum and bitcoin in 2022 and beyond.
Launched in March 2020 by Anatoly Yakovenko, the Solana coin and network were designed specially to focus on smart contracts and the creation of decentralized applications (dapps). One of the biggest advantages of SOL network is that the digital token can operate on both proof of history (PoH) and proof of stake (PoS) model. While PoS allows the users in the verification process, PoH keeps track of the transaction time and day in the record. Compared to Bitcoin and Ethereum's mining process, SOL is quick as it can achieve more transactions per unit of time and has significantly lower fees. Some of the other must-know factors of Solana are,
The Mining Model: Recently, there has been a buzz around BTC for its extreme energy consumption during mining. World leaders and even countries like China have come down strongly on the digital token for running the environment. Therefore, investors are seeking out for more environmentally friendly cryptocurrencies such as Solana. The combination of PoS and PoH can make transactions far more easy and fast with less impact on society.
Acceptance at Multiple Crypto Platforms: Besides being the first cryptocurrency to emerge, bitcoin is also famous for its wide acceptance across many crypto exchanges. Currently, SOL is also on the line with BTC to get mainstream acceptance and adoption. In June 2020, the network announced that Solana would be listed on Coinbase Pro, a major crypto exchange. Following this news, other crypto trading platforms have also opened their door to SOL.
NFTs and Smart Contracts: Although ETHER introduced smart contracts to the virtual ecosystem, the network confession has led to people looking for alternatives. Fortunately, Solana is always here to help. Besides doing great in the smart contracts, SOL is also gaining attention in the NFT sphere. Solana's NFTs allow buyers to enjoy faster transaction speeds at lower fees.
Since inception, Solana price was hovering around US$1 till January 2021. During the crypto rally in May this year, SOL went up to touch US$58.30 but fell back to US$22.18 in July. However, its rally in September was incredible. The cryptocurrency went up the hill in September and continued to follow the trend in November as well. Currently, Solana price is traded near the US$260 mark.
According to WalletInvestor prediction, SOL is anticipated to cross US$275 by the end of 2021 and the upwards trend will continue to grow further. By the end of 2022, Solana has the potential to touch US$772.726.
