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It’s tough to get overlooked. We know how it feels to be a redheaded stepchild or the 2nd drunkest girl at the party.

If someone’s making more of a clamor than you, good or bad, you’re going to be thrust into the shadows.

And as much as we love to talk about Bitcoin, it’s time for another token’s day in the sun. Or, ahem, SOL.

Let’s take today to discuss why Solana is outpacing the rest of the crypto market.

Espresso Shots

☕️ FDIC Scandal 😱 🏦 

An exposé by The Wall Street Journal revealing the toxic culture at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) has crypto leaders speaking out against misogyny in the banking sector.

The accusations against the FDIC include widespread workplace sexual harassment and coercion from male higher-ups toward female staff. The allegations suggest forced alcohol consumption and mandatory visits to strip clubs.

The FDIC was set to testify before Congress on November 14 regarding crypto and de-banking, but the hearing will no doubt be colored by the recent investigation into FDIC misconduct.

It’s an upsetting development, but we’re currently waiting for an Onion article titled “Top NY Finance Bros Behave Exactly Like You’d Expect.”

☕️ SlowMist Looking Into Skype Attack 💻 🤺 

SlowMist, a blockchain security firm, is investigating a phishing attack in which hackers used a fake Skype app to steal crypto funds.

SlowMist published a report detailing the fake Skype clients that hackers implement for these sorts of phishing scams.

“Due to the inaccessibility of Google Play in China, many users often resort to searching for and downloading apps directly from the internet,” the report reads.

“However, the types of fake apps available online are not limited to just wallets and exchanges. Social media applications like Telegram, WhatsApp and Skype are also heavily targeted.”

Like any hack, we’re left with more questions than answers. Chief among them: Why are you using Skype? We get the Google Play thing, but haven’t you heard of Zoom? Microsoft Teams? What is it, 2011?

☕️ The Mists of Avalon 🏔️ ☁️

Avalon, a new online gaming venture, could finally be the breakthrough title for Web3 gaming.

Avalon boasts some top-tier talent, including developers from titles such as EverQuest, Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, World of Warcraft, and Elden Ring. 

And that talent has attracted some serious backers. Last February, Avalon Corp announced the company had raised $13 million in funding.

Avalon would allow players to create their own worlds, in-game, with the graphics of a AAA video game title. However, there would be hardline barriers preventing genre-blending. Players can’t fly their X-wing-style spaceships on bombing runs over Medieval fantasy lands filled with orcs and elves.

Despite our limited affection for titles such as Ready Player One or Will Smith’s Wild Wild West, we feel that genre-blending shouldn’t be prevented by barriers, but instead should be punished by death.

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Polled Brew

Spilling the Beans

🌞 Why Solana is Skyrocketing 🚀

It feels like the entire crypto market is rallying.

And yes, much of that attention and positivity will be focused on Bitcoin.

Because Bitcoin’s gains have been nothing to sniff at, just weeks ago, Bitcoin hit an 18-month high and has posted roughly 134% gains in 2023.

And yes, that positive activity has been driven by a whole host of factors such as the pending ETF applications, Bitcoin’s reputation as an inflation hedge, and the approaching halving.

But we’re not here to talk about Bitcoin. No, today is Solana’s moment in the sun.

Because Solana’s SOL token has seen over 300% gains in 2023 and it’s time to discuss why.

And yes, before we can start to dig into Solana’s rally, we need to acknowledge that it’s slightly cooled off recently.

Solana went up 40% in the past week but fell around 7% on November 13. 

For better or worse, SOL was a pet favorite of Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX had some serious SOL holdings.

On November 13, the FTX bankruptcy estate engaged in a mass sell-off of 250,000 SOL tokens worth an estimated $14 million.

Because FTX had become something of a SOL whale unto itself, that sale prompted the price drop and cooling of Solana’s 160% rally in the past month. 

But with the recent dip aside, what’s been powering Solana’s astronomical rise?

On one level, yes, it’s enthusiasm surrounding the potential approval of BlackRock’s iShares ETF, not to mention the score of other applications in the pipeline.

But more than macro-trends in crypto enthusiasm, it comes down to one of the most important, and often overlooked functions of crypto, and that’s utility.

Solana’s success in 2023 hasn’t been luck, but the result of cold, hard development.

Solona Mobile is Solana’s on-the-go Web3 network. It provides users and developers with mobile tools allowing unprecedented access to dApps and Web3 infrastructure.

And with Solana Mobile, came the Solana Sage, Solana’s own Android smartphone intended to revolutionize privacy and blockchain compatibility.

The Solana Sage comes with its own dApp store and links wallet keys into a vault store within the device, providing a new level of wallet security.

Even if you’re not looking to replace iPhone with a Web3 offering, Solana’s phone represents a serious stride toward mainstream use and adoption.

The Solana developers move at a rapid pace and the Solana blockchain reflects that. Currently handling around 4,000 transactions per second, and boasting a theoretical limit far higher on their docs page; Solana is one of the fastest blockchains in the world.

Yes, Ethereum and Bitcoin are often favored over Solana due to familiarity, ecosystem size, and higher market caps.

But as we’ve stated, Solana earned those gains through hard work, consumer focus, and common sense implementation.

Solana’s SOL reminds us of Mexico’s Sol lager. Not just that they share a name, but that Sol been overshadowed by Corona for decades, despite offering a similar crisp, citrus-forward taste.

But in the fumble before a continued Solana rally, now might be the time to kick back in a lounge chair, crack a SOL, and find your beach.

Wait, sorry, that’s the Corona slogan.  We meant to say, “Taste the Sun!” Okay, maybe Corona can still do a few things better than Sol.

Crypto 101

Mixer: A digital tumbler that combines and distributes cryptocurrency to make transactions more difficult to trace.

This practice is also sometimes referred to as “tumbling.”

The Last Sip

The Last Sip: Okay, back to Sol’s marketing campaign.

“Taste the Sun!” sounds like it would work a lot better for Sunny D. Do you want your beer at a tongue-melting 10,000 degrees?

We guess it’s slightly better than the 2020 slogan, “Brewed with Solar Energy.” It’s a Mexican lager, not rooftop solar panels.

Stay Caffeinated,

Coffee & Crypto Team

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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.