Multicoin Capital co-founder Kyle Samani has predicted that an increasing number of crypto companies will choose to build on Solana rather than Ethereum, driven by Solana’s superior ease of use and greater overall functionality.
Speaking during an episode of Cointelegraph’s Trade Secrets, Samani forecasted that Solana is poised to flip Ether in terms of market capitalization during "this market cycle." He suggested that Ethereum may gradually lose its long-held edge as the default smart contract network choice for developing crypto companies and decentralized applications.
"They’ll all switch their default over to Solana because it’s the most functional network for all of them and it’s just easier to consolidate their operations around Solana to the extent that they can," Samani told Cointelegraph.
Samani and Multicoin Capital amassed a sizable early position in Solana, and he has remained one of the network’s most vocal and steadfast proponents for years. For his prediction to materialize, Solana would need to achieve a five-fold increase from its current market capitalization of $58 billion to surpass Ether’s standing market capitalization of $293 billion.
During the discussion, Samani argued that "today, no one really uses Ethereum" for active transactional utility, contending that the network largely maintains its leading valuation due to stablecoins and stablecoins borrowed against Ether as collateral.
Market data shows that SOL and ETH have largely moved in lockstep in percentage terms during recent market upturns. Over a recent 30-day period, Ether climbed 30%, while SOL registered a 34% increase. However, Solana’s recent gains come off a smaller base, and the token endured a steeper drawdown during the preceding bear market. According to TradingView metrics, SOL fell 59% over a one-year period, compared to a more moderate 45% decline for Ether.
Did Samani Ragequit Crypto?
The bold prediction comes months after a period of professional transition for the prominent investor. In February, Samani announced that he was stepping down as a managing partner of crypto investment firm Multicoin Capital after a decade in the industry, characterizing it at the time as a "bittersweet moment."
During that period, Samani appeared deeply dispirited regarding the broader trajectory of the digital asset sector. He reportedly published and quickly deleted a post on X, formerly Twitter, in which he stated that he once believed deeply in the Web3 vision and decentralized applications, but no longer did. He added that crypto had fundamentally turned out to be less interesting than many enthusiasts, including himself, had originally hoped.
If Samani experienced a crisis of confidence, it proved to be relatively short-lived. By September, he had returned to an active industry role, joining the United States board of directors at the crypto trading platform Backpack.
Ethereum Has "Questionable" Value Accrual
Expounding on his bearish outlook, Samani stated that he remains skeptical of Ethereum’s ability to accrue value sustainably, despite its status as the largest smart contract network by market capitalization.
"It’s a $400 billion to $300 billion asset that has questionable value accrual, if any, and it’s not growing at all," Samani remarked.
He added that he fails to understand why rational investors would want to allocate capital to Ether at its current valuation, noting that he sees a wide array of alternative investment opportunities available across the market at much more reasonable price points.
Reiterating his bullish stance on alternative layer-1 networks, Samani argued that a growing wave of crypto companies will pivot to Solana, which he lauded as the most functional network capable of simplifying operations for firms looking to consolidate their infrastructure.
While SOL accounts for less than one-fifth of Ether’s total market capitalization, on-chain metrics indicate that the network has outpaced Ethereum in both weekly and monthly fee generation. According to data from DefiLlama, Solana generated $23 million in fees over a 30-day window, securing fourth place in monthly fee rankings. In contrast, Ethereum generated $12.6 million over the same period, placing it in sixth position.
Solana Became One of Multicoin Capital’s Top Bets
Samani’s history with the blockchain sector dates back to 2016, when he first discovered permissionless finance and smart contracts through Ethereum, which he has frequently cited as his initial entry point into the cryptocurrency ecosystem. However, he gradually lost faith in the ecosystem after becoming dissatisfied with the strategic direction Ethereum developers chose for scaling the network through layer-2 rollups.
He discovered Solana shortly after co-founding Multicoin Capital in May 2017. The investment firm subsequently led some of Solana’s earliest funding rounds in 2018, establishing a foundational partnership that would define much of the fund’s investment thesis.
The early-stage bet turned out to be one of the most lucrative in Multicoin Capital’s history. The firm reported managing $5.9 billion worth of assets as of May 2025, cementing its status as one of the most prominent and influential investment firms operating in the cryptocurrency space.
Before entering the digital asset industry as an investor and analyst, Samani co-founded and served as the chief executive officer of Pristine, a healthcare information technology company that developed specialized enterprise software for Google Glass utilized by practicing surgeons in clinical environments.
Crypto Startups & Venture Capital
Crypto Startups & Venture Capital
Crypto Startups & Venture Capital
