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While Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) still remain the largest and the most popular cryptocurrencies by far, there is one challenger rising worth recognising.
According to DeVere Group chief executive Nigel Green, Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) is “likely” to outperform both of its big brothers next year.
“I’m confident that a key one to watch in 2022 is Solana, currently the fifth largest crypto by market cap,” he said.
“It started off the year trading at around US$2, now it’s changing hands on the deVere Crypto app for about US$200.”
If you had bought $1,000 of Solana on January 1, you’d now be sitting on about $130,000.
But Green reckons it’s not done yet.
“2022 will be Solana’s breakout year.”
Solana is actually used for a real purpose
Green attributed Solana’s instant popularity to its “masterful technology and its cost-effectiveness”.
Like Ethereum, Solana’s blockchain network implements smart contracts.
“Solana is a blockchain platform that has superior high transaction speeds, processing over 2,500 transactions per second — main rival Ether’s is 15 — and at a lower cost and without compromising decentralisation,” he said.
“This revolutionary tech will ultimately change the way almost all business and financial services are delivered in the future.”
A “growing number” of decentralised finance (defi) apps are shifting from Ether to Solana, according to Green.
“They’re also attracted by the considerably cheaper fees compared to Ether, whose prices have exploded in recent months.”
It has its issues, for sure
It hasn’t all been smooth-sailing this year for Solana though.
Back in September, the network went offline for about 17 hours. The Solana Status social media account at the time explained that the system crashed trying to process 400,000 transactions per second.
According to Green, such incidents are merely growing pains and that it doesn’t impact the long-term outlook.
While Green declined to nominate a price target, back in October he predicted Solana would reach US$250 ($355) by the end of this year. It was trading around $270 on Tuesday.
“In-the-know investors are watching it with interest,” he said.
“There’s no reason why it shouldn’t again outperform headline grabbers Bitcoin and Ethereum next year if the current momentum continues.”
