{"id":19734,"date":"2025-02-12T06:08:42","date_gmt":"2025-02-12T06:08:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/?p=19734"},"modified":"2025-02-12T06:49:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T06:49:14","slug":"what-is-solana-sol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol","title":{"rendered":"What Is Solana?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_66_1 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#What_Is_Solana_SOL\" title=\"What Is Solana (SOL)?\">What Is Solana (SOL)?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#What_Makes_Solana_Unique\" title=\"What Makes Solana Unique?\">What Makes Solana Unique?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#How_Does_Solana_Work\" title=\"How Does Solana Work?\">How Does Solana Work?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#How_To_Stake_Solana\" title=\"How To Stake Solana?\">How To Stake Solana?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#How_Does_Solana_Staking_Work\" title=\"How Does Solana Staking Work?\">How Does Solana Staking Work?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#What_Is_Solanas_Proof-of-History\" title=\"What Is Solana&#8217;s Proof-of-History?\">What Is Solana&#8217;s Proof-of-History?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#What_Is_the_Purpose_of_Solana\" title=\"What Is the Purpose of Solana?\">What Is the Purpose of Solana?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Benefits_of_Solana\" title=\"Benefits of Solana\">Benefits of Solana<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Speed\" title=\"Speed\">Speed<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Cost\" title=\"Cost\">Cost<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Single_Unified_Network\" title=\"Single, Unified Network\">Single, Unified Network<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#FAQs_on_What_is_Solana\" title=\"FAQs on What is Solana\">FAQs on What is Solana<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Can_I_Earn_Passive_Income_From_Solana\" title=\"Can I Earn Passive Income From Solana?\">Can I Earn Passive Income From Solana?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-14\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Can_I_Mine_Solana\" title=\"Can I Mine Solana?\">Can I Mine Solana?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-15\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#What_are_the_Downsides_of_Solana\" title=\"What are the Downsides of Solana?\">What are the Downsides of Solana?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-16\" href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/what-is-solana-sol\/#Is_Solana_Decentralised\" title=\"Is Solana Decentralised?\">Is Solana Decentralised?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>In recent years, Ethereum has established itself as a leader in the crypto ecosystem, powering everything from smart contracts to decentralized applications. Its ability to support a wide range of innovative technologies has made it a go-to platform for developers. However, scalability remains a significant challenge. This limitation has prompted the rise of numerous alternative blockchains aimed at rivaling Ethereum. Among them, Solana has emerged as the most successful, earning the reputation of being the &#8220;Ethereum killer.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Is_Solana_SOL\"><\/span>What Is Solana (SOL)?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana is a blockchain platform built with a strong focus on speed and scalability. It enables developers to create decentralized applications and smart contracts, much like Ethereum. However, Solana goes beyond by ensuring that its blockchain remains both fast and affordable for all users. Today, it ranks as one of the most popular blockchains in the world, with a price worth $195.75 and a market capitalization of $95.53 billion, at the time of writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The platform&#8217;s native token, SOL, is essential for executing smart contracts, processing transactions, and contributing to the security of the network. It serves as the foundation of the entire Solana ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Makes_Solana_Unique\"><\/span>What Makes Solana Unique?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Anatoly Yakovenko created Solana in 2020 to solve the shortcomings of blockchains that came before it. While older blockchains could host many decentralised applications, their lack of scalability was holding them back. To overcome this, Solana uses a unique consensus mechanism known as Proof-of-History.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana\u2019s usage of proof-of-history is the key to bringing blockchains to a larger audience. It enables the platform to process transactions thousands of times faster than older solutions like Bitcoin and Ethereum.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read more: <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/top-10-solana-projects-of-2025\">Top 10 Solana Projects of 2025<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Does_Solana_Work\"><\/span>How Does Solana Work?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana uses a hybrid consensus system, applying both Proof-of-Stake and Proof-of-History. This unique process is what allows Solana to solve both scalability and security.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Blocks are collections of transactions on a blockchain. But they cannot be added automatically, since it is important to verify if the transactions are legitimate. Proof-of-Stake is a consensus mechanism used to validate these blocks.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Users who \u201cstake\u201d or lock in their tokens can be chosen as validators. They can then confirm if the blocks are genuine and add them to the chain. To compensate for this service, validators receive the platform\u2019s crypto token as a block reward.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Proof-of-History helps in standardising time across the blockchain. Nodes then do not need to communicate with each other and confirm when transactions occurred. This reduces the time it takes for nodes to function and makes the system super fast.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_To_Stake_Solana\"><\/span>How To Stake Solana?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/How-To-Stake-Solana-1024x384.jpg\" alt=\"How To Stake Solana (SOL)?\" class=\"wp-image-19736\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/How-To-Stake-Solana-1024x384.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/How-To-Stake-Solana-300x113.jpg 300w, https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/How-To-Stake-Solana-768x288.jpg 768w, https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/How-To-Stake-Solana.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you wish to stake Solana, the first step is to acquire the token. This can be done from any centralised or decentralised crypto exchange. After this, you must create a Solana-compatible wallet to hold your tokens.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After this, the process is simple. Click on the stake button, pick a validator of your choice and confirm the number of tokens to stake.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read more: <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/solanas-liquid-staking-attracting-retail-investors\">Solana&#8217;s Liquid Staking<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Does_Solana_Staking_Work\"><\/span>How Does Solana Staking Work?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You can be involved with staking in two ways. First, you can run a Solana node. However, this can be very capital-intensive as you need to purchase expensive hardware. Most users instead choose to \u201cdelegate\u201d their stake.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Delegating means you stake your tokens with a particular node, increasing its power in the validation process. You can then share in the node\u2019s block rewards without running any powerful computers.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Is_Solanas_Proof-of-History\"><\/span>What Is Solana&#8217;s Proof-of-History?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As previously mentioned, Solana uses a unique consensus mechanism called proof-of-history. This system establishes a unified time standard across the blockchain. Unlike older blockchains, every transaction is assigned a timestamp, ensuring they are finalized in the exact order they are received.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The timestamp also helps streamline the validation process by eliminating the need for extensive communication between nodes. Since nodes don&#8217;t have to exchange information to validate the timing, transactions are confirmed significantly faster compared to other blockchains. This efficiency allows Solana to handle nearly 50,000 transactions per second.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Is_the_Purpose_of_Solana\"><\/span>What Is the Purpose of Solana?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana aims to provide a superior platform for dApps, surpassing Ethereum and its competitors. Its focus is on delivering faster transactions and more affordable fees. Solana achieves this by offering higher transaction speeds and lower costs compared to its key competitors, such as Cardano.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, Solana\u2019s dual consensus mechanism ensures the security of all applications running on the network. By addressing two of the three challenges in the &#8220;Blockchain Trilemma&#8221; introduced by Vitalik Buterin, it strengthens its position in the blockchain space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read more: <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/blog\/top-solana-ecosystem-tokens-to-invest-in-2025\">Top 10 Solana Ecosystem Tokens to invest in 2025<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Benefits_of_Solana\"><\/span>Benefits of Solana<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Speed\"><\/span>Speed<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana is one of the fastest blockchains today. It can reach speeds of 50,000 transactions per second. This is thousands of times faster than Bitcoin and Ethereum, which can only reach 7 and 20 respectively.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Cost\"><\/span>Cost<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Transactions on Ethereum are notoriously expensive. Sometimes, the fees can even exceed the value of the transaction. By contrast, Solana has gas fees of just $0.00025, several times lower than its main competitors.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Single_Unified_Network\"><\/span>Single, Unified Network<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Solana does not require any layer-2 scaling solutions to reach its blistering fast speeds. It also does not use technologies like sharding, which can fragment the blockchain and lead to security concerns.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/markets\/sol\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">buy Solana<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ZebPay<\/a>. Read more about the latest happenings in the crypto market on <a href=\"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/blog\">ZebPay blogs<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FAQs_on_What_is_Solana\"><\/span>FAQs on What is Solana<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<div id=\"rank-math-faq\" class=\"rank-math-block\">\n<div class=\"rank-math-list \">\n<div id=\"faq-question-1671536654413\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_I_Earn_Passive_Income_From_Solana\"><\/span>Can I Earn Passive Income From Solana?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>Yes, you can stake your holdings of SOL tokens to earn a passive income. This is done thanks to its delegated proof-of-stake consensus protocol. <\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-1671536698170\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_I_Mine_Solana\"><\/span>Can I Mine Solana?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>How to mine Solana? Unlike Bitcoin, Solana does not use proof-of-work. This means you cannot mine SOL using your laptop or desktop. Instead, you can stake SOL tokens through your crypto wallet.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-1671536738954\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_are_the_Downsides_of_Solana\"><\/span>What are the Downsides of Solana?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>The main downside of Solana is a lack of decentralisation. Bitcoin has around 10,000 nodes running. Meanwhile, Solana has just 1,800 nodes, many of which are owned by the same entities. This leads to the network being more centralised than other options.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-1671536781919\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question \"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_Solana_Decentralised\"><\/span>Is Solana Decentralised?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer \">\n\n<p>As mentioned above, Solana does not have a lot of independent nodes. This leads to a more centralised network than Bitcoin or Ethereum.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In recent years, Ethereum has established itself as a leader in the crypto ecosystem, powering everything from smart contracts to decentralized applications. Its ability to support a wide range of innovative technologies has made it a go-to platform for developers. However, scalability remains a significant challenge. This limitation has prompted the rise of numerous alternative [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":19737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[16,282],"class_list":["post-19734","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crypto","tag-crypto","tag-solana"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19734","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19734"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19734\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23742,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19734\/revisions\/23742"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19737"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19734"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19734"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebpay.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19734"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}