According to co-founder of bitcoin exchange BitMEX Arthur Hayes, the blockchain Aptos (APT) will eclipse Solana (SOL) in the run to rank second-largest Layer 1 (L1) behind Ethereum in two to three years. During an interview, Hayes shared his projection to macro analyst Raoul Pal.
Although he refrained from speculating on the specific elements supporting his conclusion, Hayes underlined Aptos’s ability to surpass Solana and rank second among L1 protocols after Ethereum. He vowed to express his ideas even further in a September conference.
Solana’s March 2020 launch was a major development in the field of blockchain technologies. Celebrated for overcoming several of Ethereum’s constraints, especially in scalability, speed, and cost-efficiencies, Solana was These characteristics proved crucial as Ethereum battled extreme traffic during the DeFi explosion, leading to the hunt for other answers.
Solana’s Rapid Rise Boosted
The release of the memecoins BONK in December 2022 and dogwifhat (WIF) in November 2023 greatly accelerated Solana’s explosive ascent in the crypto market. These events marked the first significant exodus of memecoin activity from Ethereum’s ecology. Thanks to reduced transaction costs, the memecoins not only improved Solana’s visibility but also drew different memcoeins and creative DeFi platforms.
But as Solana’s popularity grew, it faced network congestion, much as Ethereum did, underscoring continuous scalability problems in present blockchain systems.
On the other hand, Aptos has set itself apart with a zero downtime record from its founding, therefore establishing it as a dependable and strong substitute within the digital currency landscape. Designed by engineers once engaged in the Diem project of Meta Platforms Inc., the blockchain makes use of the unique smart contract programming language “Move.”
Although the Diem project was eventually shelved, Aptos received tremendous emphasis on its commercial use and popular acceptability, hence the knowledge and technological improvements were conveyed there. Still, Aptos has not really gathered much momentum. It lacks a popular DeFi ecosystem or main memecoins for now.
Aptos’s early stage of market performance is shown. Originally trading in $20.39 in January 2023, the bitcoin sank 63% from its March peak of $19.48. Right now, it is $7.50. APT for this decline runs $8.39 below the 0.236 Fibonacci retrace.
APT also dipped below the 50-week Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $9.25, hence creating an interesting obstacle. The fact that the bitcoin has been turned down multiple times at this level highlights its importance for any possible shift towards bullish momentum. One has to hold a posture above the lowest price of the year—$7.39—to halt more losses.
