Solana Research Institute (SRI)

A Financial Institution's Guide to Solana.

New from the Solana Research Institute. Seven chapters covering protocol, economics, governance, ecosystem, regulation, and live product, written for analysts at FIs being asked to evaluate it.

Some of what's in it 🧵

The exchanges, clearing houses, settlement systems and depositories behind every trade (financial market infrastructures, or FMIs) earn about $31.5bn a year.

Our new Solana Research Institute report works out how much of that survives when the same business runs on public blockchains. If regulation stops protecting the incumbents, we estimate they keep about $11.2bn, with the other $20.3bn going to users as lower costs or to new competitors.

We also found that new onchain services could come close to replacing that revenue, which raises the question of who wins them 🧵

In the next edition of SRI Sessions, we explore why onchain vaults need RWAs.

Hosted by @inside_r3, @multiliquid_xyz & @orca_so/ @formation_so, this 45-minute workshop will explore the market gaps currently thought to be holding vaults & earn programs back.

Details below ↓

This week's SRI Session asks a simple question: if every Solana validator earns roughly the same base reward, what actually separates them?

Hosted with @Figment_io, the workshop covers where staking rewards really come from (inflation, priority fees and MEV), how validators order transactions inside a block and who pays for it, and what changes with upgrades now arriving, from faster slots and lower issuance to DoubleZero and Alpenglow.

Designed for digital asset, custody, product and risk/compliance professionals at FIs that hold, custody or plan to offer SOL exposure, or are exploring issuing on Solana. Built for teams past the research stage.

Speakers: Nick Yushkevich (Head of Solana, Figment) and Tom Nicholls (Account Director, Figment).

Join us at the House of Sol. Thursday 5th November. 5pm. Clerkenwell, London. 30-minute session, live Q&A, and networking. Seats are limited.

Sign up now: luma.com/HoS-Workshops-…

Baillie Gifford (@BGDA_UK) is breaking new ground with the launch of a UK-authorised bond fund whose units are issued directly on Ethereum and Solana. BNY is pioneering on-chain ownership by maintaining the fund’s register entirely on blockchain technology.

What sets this fund apart? As highlighted in the SRI case study, it’s truly digital-native. This is not a traditional fund simply tokenized; it is one architected from the ground up for digital rails. Units are issued and transferred on-chain, held in digital wallets, and designed to seamlessly connect with other on-chain financial services as the ecosystem grows.

The team calls it “the same, but better”: investors enjoy the familiar protections and characteristics of a conventional fund, combined with the speed, transparency, and programmability only digital assets can offer.

Explore the full story and insights from the team in the latest SRI case study: solresearch.institute/posts/bagey-bu…