Fidelity Digital Assets, a branch of the global financial company Fidelity Investments, has published a new document called “2025 Look Ahead: Is it ‘too late’ to enter digital assets?” The report focuses on the ongoing rivalry between Ethereum and Solana. Authored by Max Wadington, the section “Ethereum Outlook” examines key metrics, upcoming network upgrades, and the potential impact on investors as we approach 2025.
In a notable segment comparing Solana and Ethereum, Wadington explains: “We believe that fundamentals are crucial for long-term investors. Ethereum shows strength in developer activity, total value locked (TVL), and stablecoin supply. On the other hand, Solana is experiencing an increase in revenue and TVL at a faster pace than Ethereum, gaining significant community attention in the past year.”
One challenge for Solana’s growth is the origin of its revenue, heavily influenced by memecoin trading. While Ethereum’s main use case in Uniswap could face a similar argument, Ethereum’s fundamentals appear less reliant on speculation, possibly offering more stability in the long run. Both platforms have risks, but Ethereum’s broader utility might make it more resilient during market downturns.
Despite this, short-term factors and technical achievements may favor Solana in 2025. The upcoming Firedancer upgrade for Solana is expected to increase transactions per second significantly, enhancing its value proposition. Meanwhile, Ethereum’s Prague/Electra upgrade may not generate as much community buzz as it does not have a significant impact on ether’s value proposition.
Another key aspect is Ethereum’s presence in US-based spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), boosting institutional and retail demand. However, regulatory changes under the Trump administration could alter this advantage. Wadington notes that such developments could either strengthen Ethereum’s position or remove it completely.
Looking ahead, Wadington suggests that fundamentals could surpass hype as the market evolves. Although Solana appears to have short-term momentum, Ethereum’s performance may see significant upside, similar to how Solana’s past underperformance set the stage for growth in 2024. As the market continues to advance, investors may shift focus towards fundamentals, potentially favoring Ethereum.
The report also delves into the ongoing discussions regarding Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap. Wadington discusses the benefits and drawbacks of this strategy, especially in light of decreasing layer 1 fees post-Deneb-Cancun upgrade. While lower fees could impact revenue in the short term, Fidelity sees long-term benefits in improved network effects.
In conclusion, Ethereum’s ecosystem could benefit from a symbiotic relationship with Layer 2 solutions, enhancing security and liquidity. The focus on maintaining low fees to retain Layer 2 projects within the Ethereum ecosystem could lead to specialized developments tailored for niche use cases by 2025.
At the time of writing, Solana was trading at $197.
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