Tether Rolls Out USDT on Layer 1 Blockchain Solana; SOL Price Surges Over 40%

According to the announcement on September 9, USDT stablecoins will now be compatible with Solana’s ecosystem, which means that users can leverage the platforms 50,000 TP/s and cheap transactions that could go as low as $0.00001. Other blockchains integrated with the USDT coin include Ethereum, Algorand, OMG network, EOS, Omni, Tron, and Liquid Network.

The rise of DeFi has been particularly interesting for the USDT stablecoin, which has since become a ‘darling’ in the burgeoning niche. This stablecoin’s volume in the DeFi market has grown significantly; stats show that over $800 million in USDT is currently locked in the top three DeFi projects. Its integration with Solana blockchain is expected to pivot further its DeFi dominance as Ethereum’s network congestion woes drag on. The Solana Foundation,

“Speed and costs are two of the largest barriers holding back DeFi today … This new initiative will open up entirely new design space and use cases for stablecoins within the DeFi ecosystem.”

Following this milestone, both Solana and USDT are optimistic about increasing activity within their networks. The former, which competes against Ethereum on DApp developments, enjoy a few competitive edges over Vitalik’s project. At the core, Solana blockchain uses Proof-of-Stake (PoS) algorithm compared to Ethereum’s, which has been a work in progress for quite a while. Some significant developments on the platform include FTX’s recently launched decentralized exchange dubbed ‘Serum.’

Notably, the announcement of Tether’s integration came as a boost to Solana’s native token ‘SOL.’ The coin’s market cap grew by over $30 million within an hour as the announcement hit crypto channels. Its price, on the other hand, surged by around 40%, although it has since dropped to settle at approximately $3.40 according to metrics from Coingecko.