Sui's TVL Lags 4-5 Times Behind Solana's $8 Billion
2min read Sui, a new entrant in the blockchain space, is often compared to Solana, an established player known for its vibrant community and robust ecosystem. While sui has a growing community, it lacks the tight-knit, meme-fueled cabal of whales, vcs, and memelords that drives hype on Solana. Sui's Basecamp events, such as the one in Paris with over 1,100 attendees from 65 countries, and the upcoming Dubai event, show a growing interest. However, Solana's off-chain game is on another level, with flagship conferences, hacker houses, and meetups globally, creating a strong network effect.
Sui is building its own events, such as the Sui Basecamps and smaller hackathons, but these are still in their early stages. To catch up, Sui needs to focus on regular build events, developer hubs, and travel fellowships. Solana's culture is heavily influenced by memecoins, NFT pumps, and inside jokes, which power its movement. In contrast, Sui's tone is more sober, focusing on being "by builders, for builders." However, memes are not just casino chips in this industry; they are catalysts for a parallel UX layer for crypto. Sui should recognize this design space and embrace it to compete effectively.
Solana's DeFi ecosystem is one of the strongest in crypto, with a total value locked (TVL) hovering around $8 billion. It has a strong structure with projects like Jupiter, Jito, MarginFi, Drift, and Raydium forming the backbone of capital flows. Sui's TVL is around $1.8 billion, which is impressive for a newer chain but still 4-5 times behind Solana. Sui has early movers like Cetus, Scallop, and Navis, but it lacks a breakout DeFi app that draws in billions. Sui's architecture is great for low-latency trading, but it needs its hero protocols and deep, sticky capital to compete.
Solana's developer loyalty is strong, with around 2,500-3,000 monthly active developers even during outages. Sui hasn't had its "oh shit" moment yet, but developer retention will be crucial. The Sui Foundation must reward loyalty, keep documentation and SDKs flowing, and promote early believers. Solana's tokenomics benefited from structured sales to long-term funds, with staking absorbing inflation. Sui has front-loaded its token supply with a 1-year cliff, avoiding inflation but lacking staking intensity or strategic unlock alignment. To fix this, Sui should keep unlocks predictable, reward participation, and expand liquidity mining programs.
Ask Aime: Why is Sui not catching up to Solana in blockchain space?
Solana wins because of critical mass. Once enough believers commit, the rest follows. Sui needs its own flywheel, including a Sui Builder DAO for governance and capital, a curated launchpad for high-signal projects, IRL expansion with "degen" flavor, degen campaigns, and narrative strengthening. Sui doesn't need to copy Solana but must outmaneuver it with intentional, narrative-first moves. It has the technology and some community, but now is the time to lock in culture, capital, and conviction. Sui can become the L1 that blends geek brilliance with "degen" fire, but it may also carve out its own niche as a more durable and mature blockchain.
