Oladotun Wilfred Akangbe, the chief marketing officer of Flincap — a platform for African over-the-counter crypto exchanges — has highlighted the cryptocurrency industry’s remarkable growth and maturity, focusing mainly on Solana’s resilience and community efforts in Africa.

Akangbe told Cointelegraph that the crypto industry is steadily maturing, demonstrating its ability to withstand various challenges that would have previously triggered a market downturn.

Crypto industry resilience

Despite challenges such as the regulatory issues surrounding Binance and Binance founder, Changpeng Zhao, pleading guilty in November 2023 to violating United States money laundering laws, the industry continues to grow.

According to Akangbe, the strength and adoption of any technology heavily depend on the vigor of its community. Crypto projects’ continuous focus on solving community problems, particularly in remittances and international payments, indicates positive year-on-year growth.

“With the kind of communities built around several crypto projects, we’re closer to mainstream adoption than ever before.”

Akangbe’s sentiment follows a recent series of Solana Allstars Nigeria community meetups in different parts of Nigeria, showcasing Solana’s thriving community in Africa.

Solana leads African Web3 adoption

The Solana Foundation has initiated several activities, such as meetups, hackathons and educational workshops, that have effectively onboarded many Africans into the Solana ecosystem. The initiatives bolster community engagement and drive the practical adoption of blockchain technology.

Various decentralized groups worldwide promote Solana, with the Solana Allstars team in Nigeria recently emerging as one of the most active Web3 adoption groups. Akangbe noted that these efforts shift user focus from price movements to the real-world utility of Solana’s projects.

Related: Crypto investor doubles Solana donations to pro-crypto PAC

Speculation has increased recently around the approval of a spot Solana (SOL) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States. According to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas, the ETF might only become feasible with a change of US administration and the leadership of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several ETF issuers have submitted applications for a spot Solana ETF. On June 28, 21Shares filed an S-1 application with the SEC just a day after ETF issuer VanEck filed.

SOL dropped over 15% in 48 hours to a low of $121 on July 1. SOL’s weekly losses stand around 10% and 23% in the last month.

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