How to Get Started with Red-Hot Solana: Buying, Selling, Staking & More

Case in point? Earlier today it hit another all-time high of $219. SOL started the year at less than $2 per coin.

If you are looking to get started buying, selling, and staking SOL, this guide will walk you through the best methods for buying, selling, storing, and staking your SOL.

What is Solana?

Solana is a new kid on the block when compared to seasoned blockchain projects such as Ethereum. The project was launched in 2018 as a public open-source blockchain by Alan Yu, Anatoly Yakovenko, Stephen Akridge, Greg Fitzgerald, and Raj Gokal.

With a blockchain network supported by a proof of stake consensus protocol, Solana boasts of being one of the fastest blockchains with a throughput of up to 710,000 TPS( transactions per second) at a 1000 millisecond block time. That’s light years ahead of the fastest cryptocurrencies and even traditional payment processors like Visa. In addition to PoS, Solana’s blockchain utilizes a decentralized clock called Proof of History (PoH) that further adds to the security and scalability of its network.

In addition to its maximized throughput and speed, the Solana blockchain also supports smart contracts thus meeting the requirements of a dApp hosting ecosystem.

Why is SOL Getting So Much Buzz?

Solana’s SOL token is living up to the hype of being an “Ethereum killer” which is a popular narrative used to describe blockchain platforms gearing up to become the next ecosystem for scalable DeFi applications.

With a scalable and high throughput blockchain, Solana has attracted over 50 market-ready projects so far including NFT marketplaces, supportive protocols for the next generation Web 3 companies, and several industry-leading DeFi apps.

Although Ethereum is the biggest platform for building dApps and DeFi applications at the moment, Solana’s popularity is increasing among developers given that its the fastest and most scalable blockchain platform for smart contract enabled dApps. It also benefits from extremely low transaction fees (generally around $0.00025).

At the start of the year, Solana’s SOL token was only worth about $2. Since then, the token has hiked to new all-time highs, blazing past the $200 mark and appreciating by more than 4500%.

Where Can I Buy SOL?

The SOL token is listed on several crypto exchanges including Binance international and Binance.US, Bitfinex, Kraken, Crypto.com and OKEx to mention a few.

Most SOL markets on centralized exchanges are paired to stablecoins such as USDT, USDC, and BUSD.

What’s the Best Way of Storing SOL?

There are several wallet options you can use to store your SOL. The best way is to use the Phantom wallet which is the MetaMask equivalent of the Solana ecosystem.

Unfortunately, you cannot store your SOL on MetaMask as MetaMask is built primarily to store tokens and digital assets on the Ethereum ecosystem. With Phantom, however, you not only get to create a wallet address but you can also swap SOL tokens for other tokens in the Solana ecosystem right from the wallet.

Other options include the Ledger hardware wallet where you can use a third-party wallet (Solflare or Phantom) to store your SOL private keys in the hardware-based wallet. Trust Wallet is also a decent alternative.

Can I Stake SOL?

Yes, you can stake SOL tokens on multiple platforms for rewards. Given that Solana is a PoS blockchain, staking your SOL tokens contributes to the security of the Solana network as you earn rewards. You can stake your SOL tokens on multiple wallets and platforms that support SOL taking.

In general, once you are on the staking platform, follow the staking guidelines offered on the platform to select a validator and delegate your stake by locking your funds in a bigger staking pool.

Here is a brief breakdown of easy-to-use SOL staking platforms:

• Exodus wallet supports staking
• Phantom.app can be used with a seed phrase or Ledger Nano to stake SOL
• You can use a liquid staking facilitator like Marinade.finance
• Centralized exchanges such as Binance, Kraken and FTX also support SOL staking

Are There NFTs on Solana?

Yes. In fact Solana has profited greatly from the continuing popularity of NFTs with the introduction of NFTs on its network surging its NFT market valuation from almost nothing to about $400 million.

One of the most well-known NFT projects on Solana is the Degenerate Ape Academy. In a selling frenzy that saw 10,000 apes sell out in just 10 minutes of launching, Degenerate Ape Academy brought tons of attention to Solana with their seven-figure sale.

NFTs are still new to Solana thus there are relatively a small amount of projects at present especially when compared to Ehtereum’s ecosystem that is blossoming with NFT projects. However, new projects are popping up on Solana daily with some examples including projects such as DigitalEyes, Solanart, and Solana Monkey Business to mention a few.

Is Solana The Future of DApps?

Solana will continue to be a favorite among DeFi and NFT lovers so long as Ethereum continues to grapple with its scalability issued.

While transaction fees on Solana average at about $0.00025 Ethereum’s gas fee tend to fluctuate going as high as $100 under congested network conditions. This is likely to further perpetuate the narrative about Solana emerging as the ultimate Ethereum killer. With that in mind, now is the best time to get your feet wet and experiment with buying, selling and staking SOL.

For more information be sure to check out our complete Solana overview.