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- Alpenglow could reduce Solana block finality to 150ms, massively outperforming Ethereum.
- Institutional staking is locking up SOL, boosting liquidity and network strength.
- Low fees and high throughput position Solana as a growing competitor to Ethereum.
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Ethereum [ETH] has long dominated the institutional scene, with its recent spot ETF launch driving billions into the network and pushing its market cap close to $600 billion. Solana [SOL], however, is rapidly closing the gap, reaching a $120 billion market cap fueled by massive staking inflows. While Ethereum leads in institutional adoption, Solana is now flexing its on-chain fundamentals, potentially reshaping the race for smart money.
Alpenglow Proposal: Turbocharging Solana
The Solana community recently kicked off voting for the ambitious Alpenglow proposal. Its goal: reduce block finality from 12.8 seconds to an astonishing 150 milliseconds. This upgrade could enable tens of thousands of transactions per second (TPS) while keeping fees near-zero—an area where Ethereum lags significantly. With Ethereum’s finality at roughly 12 minutes, Solana already executes transactions about 60× faster, and Alpenglow could push that to nearly 4,800× faster.
🚨BREAKING: The @Solana community has entered the voting stage for proposal SIMD-0326 Alpenglow, the most significant consensus upgrade proposal in the network’s history. Designed to achieve 150ms block finality, the vote will run from epoch 840 to 842. pic.twitter.com/KqVsRy7NAu
— SolanaFloor (@SolanaFloor) August 27, 2025
This speed advantage translates directly into cost efficiency. Average on-chain fees on Solana hover around $0.05 per transaction, compared to Ethereum’s $0.75. For investors and developers, this makes Solana an increasingly attractive platform for scaling decentralized applications.
Also Read: Pump.fun Buys Back $58M in PUMP Tokens, Sparking 20% Price Rally on Solana
Smart Money Flows Drive Solana Rally
Utility is drawing institutional attention. The Strategic SOL Reserve reports that 13 institutions hold 8.277 million SOL ($1.72 billion), with 585k actively staked. These large stakeholders aren’t merely holding; they’re locking up capital to earn yield, enhancing liquidity and network stability. Additionally, Solana treasuries currently hold over $820 million. While Ethereum’s treasuries have grown to nearly $20 billion, Solana’s strategic positioning shows enormous potential for institutional adoption as the network scales.
Solana Closing the Gap
The Solana rally past $215 and its SOL/ETH bounce off 0.03 underscores the network’s growing influence. With Alpenglow potentially revolutionizing transaction speed and low fees, combined with strategic staking and institutional engagement, Solana is leveraging on-chain utility to narrow Ethereum’s edge. Investors watching the ETH-SOL rivalry now face a platform with both efficiency and utility on its side.
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Disclaimer: The information in this article is for general purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. The author’s views are personal and may not reflect the views of Chain Affairs. Before making any investment decisions, you should always conduct your own research. Chain Affairs is not responsible for any financial losses
I’m a crypto enthusiast with a background in finance. I’m fascinated by the potential of crypto to disrupt traditional financial systems. I’m always on the lookout for new and innovative projects in the space. I believe that crypto has the potential to create a more equitable and inclusive financial system.
