Solana Addresses Soar to Record Level as Airdrop Season Beckons

Solana (SOL) has seen its total address count surge back to the pre-FTX implosion levels, a trend that signals the build-up of sentiments as the network’s airdrop season emerges.

Much of the impressive performance Solana has recorded as it relates to its address count comes without critical inducement in the form of airdrops. According to crypto analytics platform Messari, this trend is about to change with the line-up of numerous airdrops from Solana projects in view.

It’s airdrop season for @solana DeFi.

With only one official airdrop to date, and more coming along the way from Jupiter, Marginfi, Drift, Zeta, and JitoSol, we can expect an increase in liquidity and user engagement. pic.twitter.com/BZn3WiUT4j

— Messari (@MessariCrypto) November 30, 2023

Solana User Count to See Proper Catalyst

Solana user count may experience a 30% to 80% growth due to impending native token launches. Since its inception, Solana has only played host to one project that conducted an airdrop but soon, other projects like Jupiter, Marginfi, Drift, Zeta, and JitosSol may join the train, according to Messari.

Messari made a crucial observation about Solana’s growth trajectory based on its historical context.

The platform pointed out that in periods that mark Solana’s rally periods, its user count soars by a 2.5x market cap rate. This year, Solana’s price has soared 528%, marking a very surprising surge from late last year when it battled the impact of FTX’s collapse.

With Solana fulfilling the condition to set a new user count growth per its price performance, Messari said in the absence of such massive rallies that can change the market cap, a total of 160,000 unique users might make their way onto Solana.

Also, should the market cap of the protocols resident on Solana increase by $1 – $2.5 billion, the unique user count may rise from 210,000 to 299,000

Insulation from Negative Trends

Solana stands out as a fast protocol compared to its biggest rival, Ethereum. The incoming projects and their airdrops can tilt the balance in its favor.

Messari pointed out how network activity typically slumps after an airdrop event but dismissed this as the case for Solana, seeing it already has an established native token (SOL).

Solana is currently well-favored by market whales, and projections from VanEck show SOL has the fundamentals to insulate itself from negative trends in the long term. A proper showcase is how the coin still soared to its 2023 high after being labeled an investment contract by the US SEC.