Solana (SOL) Gains Institutional Momentum With Scaramucci Endorsement and Key Upgrades

Generated by AI AgentCoinSageReviewed byAInvest News Editorial Team
Sunday, Jan 4, 2026 1:07 am ET2min read
Aime RobotAime Summary

- Anthony Scaramucci names

top altcoin for 2026, citing 1M TPS and 150ms finality via Firedancer/Alpenglow upgrades.

- Institutional adoption grows with $765M ETF inflows and 198% TVL surge, outpacing Ethereum's tokenization growth.

- Solana's $10B DeFi ecosystem and 211M dApp revenue highlight competitive edge over

in cost and speed.

- Upgrades target enterprise-grade performance, positioning Solana for high-frequency trading and stablecoin dominance.

- Regulatory clarity and macroeconomic tailwinds amplify Solana's appeal as institutional confidence in blockchain infrastructure grows.

Solana (SOL) is gaining significant institutional attention heading into 2026, fueled by high-profile endorsements and major technical upgrades. SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci recently named

his top altcoin pick for the year, highlighting its transaction speed advantages. This endorsement comes as Solana positions itself to capture traditional finance liquidity through critical infrastructure improvements. With planned upgrades targeting enterprise-grade performance and growing tokenized asset volumes, Solana aims to become a core blockchain for global financial infrastructure.

Why Is Solana Anthony Scaramucci's Top Altcoin for 2026?

Anthony Scaramucci selected Solana for its unique technical advantages in speed and cost efficiency. He specifically cited its ability to process over 65,000 transactions per second as crucial for real-world adoption potential.

Scaramucci's endorsement aligns with Solana's growing institutional footprint, including BlackRock and Tesla exploring asset tokenization on the network. This institutional interest comes amid favorable macroeconomic conditions including potential rate cuts and regulatory clarity that could benefit quality altcoins. Solana's historical correlation with but amplified gains during rallies adds to its investment case.

Scaramucci's confidence partly stems from Solana's $10 billion DeFi ecosystem and its proof-of-history consensus mechanism.

The blockchain also generated over $211 million in dApp revenue during the past month, more than double Ethereum's total. Such metrics demonstrate robust network activity despite market volatility. While coin applications currently drive much of this usage, the underlying infrastructure attracts serious developer attention. This activity creates a compounding effect that supports long-term value accrual.

How Will Alpenglow and Firedancer Upgrades Transform Solana?

Solana's 2026 technical roadmap centers on two major upgrades: Firedancer and Alpenglow. Firedancer aims to boost transaction capacity to 1 million per second while Alpenglow replaces proof-of-history validation to reduce finality to 100-150 milliseconds.

Such speeds would position Solana as the only blockchain capable of supporting high-frequency trading use cases. These improvements directly address institutional requirements for settlement reliability in financial applications.

The Alpenglow upgrade particularly focuses on security enhancements while maintaining sub-second finality.

This could help Solana capture more stablecoin and real-world asset volume, especially as regulatory clarity improves via developments like the Clarity Act. The combination of technical upgrades and regulatory tailwinds creates favorable conditions for enterprise adoption. Solana's institutional inflows already exceeded $765 million in ETF products, signaling growing confidence. The network's cost structure advantages make it particularly competitive for high-volume financial operations.

Can Solana Challenge in Tokenized Asset Growth?

Solana is rapidly gaining market share in tokenized real-world assets with its TVL surging 198% over the past year to $38.5 billion.

While Ethereum still leads in absolute terms with $362.7 billion TVL, Solana's growth rate more than doubles Ethereum's pace. The network holds $69.2 million in tokenized stock value and its share of this emerging market is expanding quickly. Lower transaction costs and higher throughput make Solana attractive for new asset tokenization experiments.

Solana's tokenized equity position increased significantly despite Ethereum's $274.8 million tokenized stock portfolio.

The chain's technical advantages in settlement speed could prove decisive as traditional finance explores blockchain integration. Developer migration from competing platforms could accelerate this trend, as seen when Base's strategy shift prompted builder discontent. While Ethereum remains dominant, Solana's specialized approach positions it to capture specific segments of the tokenization market.