Из жизни альткоинов

Solana’s recent bounce may be a result of the sharp spike in the network’s adoption and activity over the past few months. During the bullish period, on-chain data shows that SOL’s network has been performing at an unprecedented level as transactions noticeably increase in numbers.

After a substantial growth in transaction activity, Solana appears to be pushing its network capabilities to new thresholds. The Solana Daily on the social media platform X has shared interesting data that reveals that the network was a leader in terms of transactions per second executed in 2025.

From transaction throughput and confirmation speed to sustained uptime under severe load, the network is exhibiting a level of efficiency that highlights its design focus on high-speed execution. As seen from the report, the SOL network performance metrics are climbing to historical levels. 

Data shows that Solana averaged over 1,100 Transactions Per Second (TPS) in 2025, marking a new performance milestone for the blockchain. This performance boost is more than just a technical achievement. It is also a sign of expanding practical use and establishes Solana as a frontrunner in the competition for scalable blockchain infrastructure.

According to Solana Daily, the transaction figure represents a 34% increase year-over-year from 2024. Such a rise indicates a continued improvement in the efficiency and throughput of the SOL network. 

Throughout 2025, SOL has demonstrated its leadership in on-chain activity, solidifying its standing as one of the most popular blockchain networks. In a broader outlook, the network remains at the forefront of the total number of transactions executed in 2025. The report from Solana Daily reveals that the network saw a staggering 121 billion overall number of transactions in 2025, surpassing other major chains such as Ethereum, BNB Chain, Tron, Near, Aptos, among others. 

A large transaction count of this weight highlights that SOL’s high throughput, low fees, and real usage continue to set it apart as the most active blockchain in the entire cryptocurrency space today. These key features keep attracting investors, developers, and users at a large scale, reinforcing its robust ecosystem.

With its massive adoption and robust user base, Solana is making a powerful stand across the crypto space. Amid this surge in transaction activity, the network has also experienced a substantial rise in trading volume.

SolanaFloor on X reported that the blockchain recorded nearly $1.6 trillion in trading volume in 2025, outpacing every leading Layer 1 and Layer 2 solutions. When compared to major centralized exchanges, SOL also saw more trading volume within the year than the likes of Bybit, Coinbase Global, and Bitget.

Only Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, was ahead of the network. At this rate of volume acceleration, SOL is no longer solely competing on performance. It is now establishing the standard for on-chain transactions throughout the whole blockchain sector.

On-chain data shows the large Bitcoin investors have been accumulating recently, while retail investors have been exiting from the market.

In a new post on X, on-chain analytics firm Santiment has discussed about the latest behavior in the Bitcoin supply of the retail investors and that of the sharks and whales.

Retail investors here refer to the smallest of entities on the network, carrying less than 0.01 BTC ($923) in their wallets. The sharks and whales, on the other hand, are groups that correspond to the investors with notable holdings.

The range for these large investors is defined as 10 to 10,000 coins, which converts to $923,000 at the lower end and $923 million at the upper one. Because of their massive holdings, the sharks and whales are considered to carry some influence in the market. Naturally, the whales, which include the much more massive investors of the two, are regarded as the more important group.

Now, here is the chart shared by Santiment that shows the trend in the Bitcoin supply held by the two sides of the network over the last few months:

As displayed in the above graph, the Bitcoin sharks and whales have been in a phase of accumulation since December 17th. During this window, they have added a total of 56,227 BTC ($5.2 billion) to their holdings. “This marked crypto’s local bottom,” noted the analytics firm.

In the same period, the retail side of the market has also participated in net buying. BTC initially consolidated while this accumulation occurred, but in the last few days, its price has witnessed some recovery.

Interestingly, the investor cohorts have diverged since this breakout, with retail traders turning to distribution while the sharks and whales have continued to add. This is a potential sign that the small hands believe the new rally to be a bull’s trap, so they are exiting with their profits while they can.

Santiment considers this setup to be a bullish one. According to the analytics firm, selling from sharks and whales that coincides with retail buying tends to be “very bearish,” while both buying at the same time (or retail being sideways) is “bullish,” and whales accumulating/retail selling is a “very bullish” combination.

In the chart, the last of these zones is highlighted in green. “Entering into a green zone now, we have a higher probability than usual to continue to see market cap growth throughout crypto,” explained Santiment.

It now remains to be seen whether the divergence in the Bitcoin market will continue to grow or if the sharks and whales will flip and start harvesting profits.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $92,600, up over 5% in the last week.

South Korea’s financial authorities are reportedly considering introducing a system that allows regulators to conduct pre-emptive crypto account freezes to stop digital asset price manipulation.

On Tuesday, a local news media outlet reported that the Financial Services Commission (FSC) is discussing introducing a system to prevent suspects from hiding or withdrawing unrealized profits from market manipulation related to crypto assets.

In a January 6 meeting, the regulators revealed that they have been discussing the matter since November, exploring the proposal for prosecution measures against suspects of crypto asset price manipulation.

According to Newsis, some officials consider that there’s a need “to complement the current Virtual Asset User Protection Act by implementing measures for the confiscation of criminal proceeds or the preservation of recovery funds in advance.”

The measure would restrict fund outflows such as withdrawals, transfers, and payments from a crypto-related account suspected of obtaining illicit gains through typical market manipulation tactics, including pre-purchasing, repeated trades via automated trading, buying at inflated prices, and profit-taking.

Under the current rules, authorities must obtain court warrants to freeze assets linked to crypto manipulation, which leaves no means to act quickly and prevent asset concealment beforehand. One committee member reportedly referenced the payment suspension system for stock price manipulation, which was introduced through the revision of the Capital Markets Act in April.

This system saw the first domestic case of preemptively freezing accounts suspected of unfair trading last September, when the Joint Task Force for Eradicating Stock Price Manipulation imposed these measures on 75 accounts involved in a KRW 100 billion stock price manipulation case by a group of wealthy individuals.

Some FSC officials allegedly emphasized that this system is necessary for crypto assets, arguing that they are easier to conceal once transferred to personal wallets, with one noting that “currently, only exchange deposits and withdrawals are blocked, while withdrawals to financial institutions remain possible. Blocking those withdrawals would help swiftly prevent concealment.”

Another FSC member affirmed that “payment suspension is a step before recovery preservation; it would be good if we could implement it proactively,” while others asked whether provisions related to unfair trading in the Capital Markets Act can be partially replicated in the Second Phase of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act.

South Korea’s Second Phase of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act was expected to be submitted at the end of 2025. However, it has been delayed until the start of 2026 due to an ongoing disagreement between the FSC and the Bank of Korea (BOK).

As reported by Bitcoinist, financial authorities have been clashing over rules related to the issuance and distribution of stablecoins, disagreeing on the extent of banks’ role in the issuance of won-pegged tokens.

The central bank has pushed for a consortium of banks owning at least 51% of any stablecoin issuer seeking approval in the country. The FSC has shared concerns that giving a majority stake to banks could reduce participation from tech firms and limit the market’s innovation.

Despite the delay, the main policies of the crypto framework have been reportedly decided. Notably, the FSC’s draft will include investor protection measures such as no-fault liability for crypto asset operators and isolation of bankruptcy risks for stablecoin issuers.

The bill is expected to require crypto asset operators to comply with disclosure obligations as well as terms and conditions. In addition, “impose strict liability for damages on digital asset operators in accordance with the Electronic Financial Transactions Act in cases of hacking or computer system failures.”

On Thursday, Tether, the powerhouse behind the widely used stablecoin USDT, announced the introduction of Scudo, a new unit of account designed to enhance the usability of Tether Gold (XAU₮). 

This move comes amid a historic rally in gold prices, driven by geopolitical tensions and economic shifts, making the commodity a focal point for investors looking for stability.

In its press release, Tether emphasized that the Scudo unit aims to revive gold as a practical medium of payment accessible to all. Year-to-date, gold has soared nearly 70% in value, currently trading at approximately $4,482 per ounce. 

In addition to Scudo, Tether introduced a new platform named WDK. This framework allows developers, companies, and even artificial intelligence (AI) agents to create, deploy, and manage self-custodial wallets that are compatible with any device and operating system, further supporting XAU₮, stablecoins, and Bitcoin (BTC).

However, Tether recognized a significant barrier that remained: for everyday transactions or pricing goods, working in fractions of an ounce can become cumbersome. 

Long decimal values are often unintuitive and challenging for practical use. Scudo seeks to solve this issue by providing a simpler unit of account, akin to how smaller denominations enhance traditional currencies as functional money.

One Scudo is defined as 0.001 troy ounce of gold—1/1000 of one XAU₮—which makes it easier to price and transfer gold-backed values. This approach allows users to transact in whole or partial Scudo units instead of dealing with complex decimal fractions of XAU₮. 

Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s chief executive officer (CEO), commented on the significance of this development for investors, stating: 

Gold is once again proving its role as the ultimate store of value alongside Bitcoin. XAU₮ makes gold digital, and now with Scudo, we are lowering the barrier to entry so that anyone can own, easily price, and transact even the smallest fraction of the historical world’s most trusted asset. 

With Scudo, Tether aims to make gold a reliable store of value and a more intuitive medium of exchange, thereby promoting financial inclusion for its global user base. The firm made the following statement: 

Tether Gold remains fully backed by physical gold held in secure vaults, with ownership verifiable on-chain via Tether’s asset-tracking tools. Scudo does not change the structure or backing of XAU₮, but provides a simpler way to measure and transact gold value, particularly as prices continue to climb.

Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com