Western Union’s decision to build on Solana isn’t just another stablecoin integration, but a signal that the foundations of global payments may be starting to shift. For decades, Western Union has been synonymous with cross-border money movement, built on a network of intermediaries, settlement layers, and regional constraints. Behind the surface, this move suggests a potential shift in how global payment infrastructure is being built, upgraded, and ultimately replaced.

How Solana Could Fit Into The Future Of Global Money Movement

Western Union’s decision to build USDPT on Solana is more than just another stablecoin headline; it’s a signal that the role of stablecoins is moving from crypto narrative to real payment infrastructure. The CEO of MEXC and Honorary Chairman of MVenturesLabs, Vugar Usi, has pointed out on X that for years, stablecoins have mainly been seen as trading tools, and were a way for traders to move capital faster, manage liquidity, and reduce friction in crypto.

However, when a global remittance giant begins building a dollar-based payment token on SOL, the narrative shifts from trading utility to real-world infrastructure. This is no longer about traders optimizing capital flow, but about real-world settlement, treasury management, and cross-border payments operating on new rails.

Furthermore, it’s about replacing slow, fragmented financial rails with infrastructure that operates seamlessly in the background. In Vugar Usi’s view, SOL is validated as a payment rail, and stablecoins as a real financial infrastructure. Thus, exchanges should be ready with liquidity, access, education, and simple user journeys.

For platforms like MEXC, this shift carries clear implications, because adoption does not always arrive loudly. Sometimes, it arrives through better rails, faster settlement, and fewer reasons for users to care about the backend. If these rails disappear, that’s when crypto will win.

Is Solana Entering The Kind Of Zone Where Reversals Begin?

Solana is going through one of those moments that tend to define the market cycle. Crypto analyst Robert revealed that SOL price has taken a severe hit, down 71% from its 2025 all-time high (ATH). At the same time, Solana’s Net Unrealized Profit/Loss (NUPL) is sitting deep at 0.67 in full capitulation territory, a level that typically reflects that holders are sitting on heavy unrealized losses.

Data from Fidelity Investments suggests that historically, similar conditions have preceded strong rebounds, with a median of over 516% the following year. Meanwhile, they’re quick to emphasize the limitations of a small sample size, weak correction, and that past performance may not repeat itself.

On the bright side, network usage is rising, with monthly active addresses up 50%, new addresses growing over 35%, and stablecoin flows are holding steady. However, this shift shows that real utility is building even as the price is down, but on-chain activity tells a more resilient story.

Since trading firms like FTX collapsed in November 2022, the Solana blockchain has seen significant gains and regained investor confidence, with Ethereum developers increasingly migrating to it. 

According to a recent analysis by Jack Inabinet, Senior Analyst at Bankless, with significant growth in key metrics and SOL’s year-to-date increase of 770%, Solana has solidified its position as a top-tier blockchain. Native teams within the Solana ecosystem played a key role in its resurgence, but now non-native protocols are also seizing the opportunity. 

Developers Deliver On Hype

Solana’s comeback, from a low of $8 in December 2022 to an annual high of $210 in March, is one of the most notable uptrends of this bull cycle. However, the ecosystem’s growth extends beyond its native token holders.

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According to Inabinet, developers have delivered on the hype, starting with the PYTH airdrop, the Pyth network’s native token. This incentivized users from different ecosystems to explore SOL by assigning tokens to addresses interacting with Pyth oracles across multiple networks. 

Additionally, Solana-native liquid staking protocol Jito Labs conducted its airdrop, catalyzing “mass adoption” through points-based incentive systems.

While Solana-native protocols laid the foundation for the platform’s mainstream adoption, Ethereum developers are increasingly migrating to SOL. Inabinet highlights that recognizing the significant on-chain activity within Solana, projects are eager to capitalize on the opportunity. 

Ethereum Developers Flock To Solana

For example, the decentralized compute-sharing network Render migrated its token to the Solana Program Library (SPL) standard, and MetaMask introduced Solana compatibility by introducing “Snaps.” 

In addition, according to Inabinet, Aave, Ethereum’s first lending destination, has approved the deployment of a minimally viable version of its V3 isolated money market through Neon Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), a compatible Ethereum development environment built on top of Solana. 

Proposals for independent deployments, such as the EVM-based perpetual trading platform GMX, further demonstrate the growing interest in SOL.

However, the analyst noted that Ethereum and Solana have different approaches to scaling, with Ethereum opting for network fragmentation and Solana favoring a unified state. 

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Given these approaches, Inabinet suggests that Solana’s alternative vision of blockchain offers attractive features, attracting developers seeking scalability and concentration of use. 

Nonetheless, the analyst cautions that developers must take a diversified approach to maximize success and secure market share. Inabinet concluded: 

The crypto industry must hurdle a massive chasm of uncertainty to progress from infancy into an end-state where true adoption is achieved, and trillions upon trillions of dollars in traditional assets make their way on-chain. Until then, application developers succumbing to blind chain loyalty are leaving money and market share on the table.

As of press time, SOL has seen a 5% increase in the last 24 hours, resulting in a current trading price of $171, with the next price hurdle at $176. 

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com