Bank Report Warns of Solana's Narrowing Competitive Advantage

Standard Chartered's latest analysis suggests Solana may be developing an overreliance on memecoin trading, potentially limiting its long-term growth prospects. The layer-1 blockchain's design prioritizes fast, low-cost transactions — characteristics that have made it particularly attractive for speculative memecoin activity.

The Memecoin Dominance Challenge

According to the bank's May 27 research, 【75%】 of Solana's application revenue stems from memecoin trading. While this frenzy successfully tested the network's scalability, Standard Chartered notes several concerning trends:

——"Declining usage combined with cheap transactions creates an unsustainable economic model," the report states——

Network data shows Solana's decentralized exchange volume peaked in March 2024 alongside the memecoin craze, with current activity levels falling 【42%】 from those highs.

Ethereum's Scaling Solutions Close the Gap

The competitive landscape shifted dramatically after Ethereum's March 2024 Dencun upgrade. Analysis of transaction fees reveals:

• Solana: 【$0.002】 average fee
• Arbitrum (Ethereum L2): 【$0.003】 average fee

This near-parity in cost, combined with Ethereum's established security advantages, presents what Standard Chartered calls "a critical inflection point" for both networks.

Three-Year Outlook Favors Ethereum

The report projects Solana will underperform Ethereum until at least 2026, citing:

1. Ethereum's modular architecture enabling cheaper scaling
2. Solana's lack of diversification beyond speculative assets
3. Growing institutional preference for Ethereum's regulatory clarity

Interestingly, the bank suggests Solana could regain ground by expanding into high-throughput financial applications and consumer-facing services — though such transitions typically require multi-year development cycles.

The Path Forward for Solana

Industry observers note Solana's technical strengths remain intact, particularly for applications requiring:

• Sub-second transaction finality
• Microtransaction capabilities
• High-frequency trading environments

As of press time, Solana developers have announced three major ecosystem initiatives targeting payment systems and social media integration — potential first steps toward broadening the network's utility beyond its current memecoin specialization.