Solana Upgrades Software as Validator Revenue Exceeds $30 Million Daily
Two months ago, issues facing Solana's smaller validators were reported. These validators verify the accuracy of Solana's ledger. A decline in fees and tips occurred amid reduced activity from memecoin traders. In response, the Solana Foundation set a cap on commissions that validators could charge while receiving staking delegation, crucial for small validators.
The price of SOL was stagnant, limiting potential revenue for validators. Estimates indicated that validators needed to attract millions more in SOL to break even.
Currently, SOL’s price has surpassed $200 for the third time since 2021, with daily validator revenue exceeding $30 million since mid-October, up from around $22 million per day in early September, according to data from 21.co.
Anza, spun out of Solana Labs, released v2.0.14 of Solana’s software, one of its first upgrades since implementing a central scheduler over the summer. Approximately 40% of validators have transitioned from v1 to v2, reporting improved performance post-upgrade.
One validator noted better maximal extractable value (MEV) rewards with the new version, while another experienced quicker transaction validations. Knoxtrades, owner of Juicy Stake, observed that the central scheduler works alongside stake-weighted quality of service (SWQoS), improving transaction efficiency and block rewards.
A critical observation is the number of validators returning to the network. A year ago, Solana had about 1,970 nodes; today, it has 1,358, indicating less distribution. However, the network has gained 58 new nodes since September 28 during its recent metrics and price rally.