Solana News Today: Corporations Shift to Private Blockchains Amid Public Chain Fragmentation

Corporations are increasingly prioritizing their own blockchain solutions over public networks, sparking a shift that challenges the traditional crypto community’s assumptions about decentralization and open-source infrastructure. Recent moves by major players like Stripe and Circle highlight a growing trend in the industry: instead of building on existing public chains such as Ethereum or Solana, companies are launching their own Layer 1 blockchains. This decision is not driven by ideological loyalty to open-source principles, but by a pragmatic focus on control, scalability, and operational efficiency [1].

The Ethereum community, for instance, questioned why Stripe and Circle wouldn’t use Layer 2 solutions, but experts like Ethan Buchman and Christian Catalini argue that vertical integration is simply more profitable for corporations. By creating their own chains, companies can position themselves at the center of interoperability or direct activity toward a network they control, increasing their potential to capture value and become global fintech leaders [1].

This trend is not limited to fintech firms. Phantom, a leading Web3 wallet provider, recently chose to integrate Hyperliquid’s perpetual trading platform over Solana-based options like Drift and Jupiter. The decision was based on clear business metrics: Hyperliquid processed $371 billion in volume over the last 30 days, compared to a combined $52 billion on the Solana-based platforms. This stark difference led Phantom’s CEO to emphasize that the best decision for users—based on price, execution, and liquidity—was to go with Hyperliquid [1].

Meanwhile, Aave, a prominent DeFi protocol, is scaling back its multichain strategy, exiting unprofitable Layer 2s like Soneium, Celo, Linea, ZKsync, and Scroll. This reflects a broader shift in the industry: developers and projects are moving away from the “one protocol to rule them all” mindset in favor of pragmatic, business-driven strategies [1].

While this trend signals a practical approach from companies, it also highlights a growing disconnect between public blockchain communities and corporate adoption. Crypto enthusiasts debate the merits of different chains and their token economics, but corporations are quietly deploying permissioned blockchains for internal use—systems that are not open to the public and rarely involve tradable tokens. These systems are used for supply chain management, data tracking, and regulatory compliance, offering the speed and cost-efficiency needed in competitive markets [2].

This shift raises regulatory concerns. As governments implement stricter compliance measures, companies are turning to private blockchains where they can embed compliance mechanisms directly into the system. However, the proliferation of these chains also poses challenges, including interoperability issues and fragmentation of the blockchain ecosystem [2].

Critics warn that the rise of corporate blockchains may undermine the original vision of decentralized finance. For example, valuation expert Aswath Damodaran has cautioned against companies holding Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies as reserves, arguing that their volatility and lack of liquidity make them unsuitable for traditional financial systems [3].

Despite these concerns, blockchain’s long-term potential remains intact. Innovations such as tokenization are already being tested in financial markets, with digital representations of assets like stocks and bonds being issued on blockchain platforms. These developments aim to reduce settlement times and eliminate intermediaries, offering a glimpse into the technology’s broader future [2].

However, such applications remain speculative. For now, traders and investors are more focused on throughput, transactions per second, and returns, rather than the underlying infrastructure of the blockchain. This suggests that while blockchain is evolving into a foundational technology, its adoption will continue to be shaped by practical considerations rather than ideological ones [2].

As the line between public and private blockchains blurs, one question remains: can a technology built for decentralization remain relevant in an era of corporate customization? The answer may lie not in public exchanges or speculative trading, but in the quiet, behind-the-scenes systems that power global industries.

[1] https://blockworks.co/news/stripe-circle-l1-launches

[2] https://www.thetokendispatch.com/p/the-diy-blockchain-trend

[3] http://www.msn.com/en-in/money/markets/aswath-damodaran-gives-4-reasons-why-companies-should-think-twice-before-parking-cash-in-bitcoin/ar-AA1IZdu1?apiversion=v2&batchservertelemetry=1&domshim=1&noservercache=1&noservertelemetry=1&ocid=finance-verthp-feeds&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1