Introduction
Solana’s economic activity declined for the second consecutive quarter in Q3 2025, with active addresses plunging 30% and operational efficiency collapsing over 40%. However, stablecoin activity emerged as a bright spot, with total supply surging 37% to $14.6 billion, providing crucial support to the network during the downturn. The mixed performance reveals a blockchain grappling with monetization challenges while maintaining pockets of robust growth, particularly in stablecoin adoption and total value locked.
Key Points
- Stablecoin supply on Solana surged 37% to $14.6 billion, driven by USDC growth of 39.6%, while daily transfer volume increased 50% to $752 million
- Network fundamentals showed contraction with Real Economic Value dropping 18% and Real Onchain Yield plunging 48%, though total value locked increased 33% to $11.5 billion
- Despite short-term challenges, Solana has generated $2.85 billion in revenue over the past year, exceeding Ethereum's early growth by more than 50 times according to 21Shares analysis
Economic Contraction and Efficiency Decline
Solana’s Q3 2025 performance revealed significant economic headwinds, with Real Economic Value (REV) dropping 18% quarter-over-quarter to $222.7 million and Real Onchain Yield plunging 48% to 0.47%, according to The DeFi Report’s SOL Report Q3 2025. The network’s operational efficiency deteriorated sharply, with the cost to produce $1 of real economic value rising 41% to $5.74, indicating weaker throughput per unit of capital deployed. This efficiency collapse coincided with a 30% decline in active addresses and an 18% drop in DeFi Velocity, reflecting slower on-chain turnover and diminished user engagement.
Despite these challenges, staking rewards remained largely supported by SOL issuance, which accounted for 93% of total returns during the quarter. Total Onchain Yield averaged 7.08% APY, down 10.8% from the previous quarter, while network GDP fell 6.8% to $909 million. The data paints a picture of a network struggling with user monetization and operational efficiency, even as total SOL staked rose 3.13% and total value locked (TVL) climbed 33% to $11.5 billion, creating a complex narrative of simultaneous contraction and growth.
Stablecoin Resurgence Provides Critical Support
Amid the broader economic slowdown, stablecoin activity emerged as a critical bright spot for Solana. According to The DeFi Report founder Michael Nadeau, the total stablecoin supply on Solana surged by 37% to $14.6 billion, driven primarily by USDC, which grew 39.6% and now represents 69% of all stablecoins on the network. Average daily stablecoin transfer volume surged 50% to $752 million, while effective velocity rose 42%, indicating healthier transactional activity and suggesting that stablecoins are becoming an increasingly important component of Solana’s ecosystem.
The stablecoin growth extended beyond established players like USDC, with Solstice’s USX stablecoin—dubbed the ‘Ethena on Solana’—seeing its supply jump 235% in September alone to $167.7 million. This explosive growth in stablecoin activity provided crucial support to the network during a period of broader economic contraction, demonstrating that while user activity and economic efficiency may be declining, the fundamental infrastructure for value transfer and settlement remains robust and growing.
DeFi Activity Shows Mixed Momentum
Decentralized finance activity on Solana presented a mixed picture in Q3 2025. Decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes increased 7.2% to $3.97 billion per day, though trading platform revenue slipped 5% to $214 million and new token launches declined 19%. Private automated market makers (AMMs) emerged as a key growth driver, with volumes up 69% and now accounting for 37% of total DEX trading, indicating a shift toward more sophisticated trading mechanisms even as overall market activity showed signs of strain.
From a tokenomics perspective, SOL issuance fell 2.98%, while burned SOL decreased 9%, resulting in a 1.74% increase in circulating supply and a 4.8% annualized net dilution rate. The combination of declining new token launches, reduced trading revenue, and increased dilution suggests that while the network’s infrastructure continues to attract capital through TVL growth, the monetization of user activity remains challenging, creating headwinds for sustainable economic growth.
Long-Term Growth Trajectory Outpaces Ethereum
Despite the short-term challenges, Solana’s long-term growth trajectory remains impressive. According to analysis from 21Shares, Solana generated $2.85 billion in revenue between October 2024 and September 2025, which is more than 50 times higher than Ethereum’s output at a similar stage. This remarkable performance demonstrates Solana’s ability to monetize diverse sectors including DeFi, AI, real-world assets, and the meme coin frenzy—achieving what Ethereum couldn’t in its formative years.
The network has overtaken Ethereum’s early growth curve and emerged as one of the fastest-scaling revenue engines in blockchain history. This long-term perspective provides important context for the Q3 2025 slowdown, suggesting that while the network faces near-term economic headwinds, its fundamental growth trajectory remains strong. The ability to maintain robust stablecoin growth and TVL expansion during a period of economic contraction further underscores the network’s resilience and potential for recovery.
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