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Coinmonks

6 min readMar 2, 2024

THE Neon EVM ANALYSIS & IT’S IMPACT ON SOLANA.

Ethereum and Solana stand out as leading Blockchain technologies in the cryptocurrency space, each resembling a unique city with its own operational systems. Much like a bridge symbolizing progress between two separated cities, developers choose between Ethereum and Solana based on specific criteria such as security, scalability, cost, and ecosystem maturity. Ethereum is renowned for its robust environment, while Solana is favored for high performance and low fees. The Neon EVM serves not just as a bridge but as a link, harmonizing the compatibility of both chains. In this article, we’ll explore the intricacies of Neon EVM, its functioning, delve into the Neon ecosystem, assess its impact on Solana, and analyze the contributions of Neon projects to the Solana ecosystem.

What Exactly is Neon EVM?

Neon EVM, a groundbreaking platform developed by Neon Labs, under the leadership of Director Marina Guryeva, acts as a bridge between Ethereum and Solana, empowering developers to deploy Ethereum-compatible decentralized applications (dApps) on Solana’s high-speed network. This integration harmonizes the strengths of both worlds, combining Ethereum’s mature ecosystem with Solana’s scalability.

Neon EVM enables developers to retain the best of Ethereum Blockchain, including familiar languages (Solidity, Vyper), well-known Ethereum tools (MetaMask, Hardhat, Foundry, Remix, etc.), Ethereum RPC API compatibility, and Ethereum account features. Simultaneously, it harnesses Solana's parallel execution of transactions, low gas fees (0.000015 SOL/tx), high transaction speed (2,000+ tps), and access to the growing Solana Ecosystem.

This solution facilitates the seamless operation of any Ethereum application on Solana with minimal reconfiguration, extending the reach of Ethereum dApps to customers on Solana. Neon EVM also contributes to opening up liquidity on Solana to DeFi products.

How Neon EVM Works:

Neon EVM functions by creating a compatibility layer over Solana, emulating the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This emulation allows Ethereum dApps to run on Solana without any code changes, providing developers with the flexibility to use Ethereum's tools and smart contracts within Solana's efficient and cost-effective environment. The following overview outlines how Neon EVM coordinates communication between Ethereum dApps and Solana.

Neon EVM's Transaction Lifecycle:

Transaction Initiation:
- Users initiate a transaction (tx) as a signed Ethereum-like tx directed to a Neon RPC endpoint.
The Neon Proxy processes the request, providing a gas usage estimate for tx execution and wrapping the Ethereum-like tx as a Solana tx.
Neon Proxy and Execution on Solana:
- The Neon Proxy passes the wrapped tx to the Neon EVM program hosted on Solana, resulting in a Solana receipt and a corresponding Neon EVM receipt.
- The Neon smart contract unwraps the tx, checks the user’s signature, loads the EVM state from Solana storage, executes the tx inside Solana BPF, and updates Solana’s state to reflect the new Neon EVM state.
Solana and Neon EVM Undertake a State Change: This completes the request.

Note: Throughout this process, the NEON token plays a crucial role in facilitating transactions and governance.

The Neon Ecosystem:

Several dApps have expanded to the Solana ecosystem through Neon EVM infrastructure.

The Neon EVM is not just a standalone technology but is designed with a powerful architecture, including Neon Proxy, Neon DAO, and Neon Tools.

Neon EVM Program:
- A smart contract on the Solana blockchain that accepts Ethereum-like transactions and processes them on Solana according to Ethereum rules. Ethereum transactions directed to the Neon EVM are called Neon Transactions.
Neon Proxy:
- Allows Ethereum dApps to be ported to Neon with minimal reconfiguration by packaging an EVM transaction into a Solana transaction. The Proxy is provided as a containerized solution that’s intuitive for Operators.
- Proxy Operators play a pivotal role in transaction processing, earning NEON tokens as compensation. Learn more about becoming a Proxy Operator.
Neon DAO:
- Provides custodial services to the Neon Foundation, aiding in directing future research and development.
- Deploys contracts on Solana to offer a governance layer, allowing NEON holders to raise and vote on proposals impacting Neon EVM functionality. Read further on how to become part of the DAO and it’s voting process.
Neon Tools:
- Extend the features of the Neon EVM.
Neon Scan:
A block explorer and analytics platform to examine Neon transactions within Solana.
NeonPass:
Facilitates the transfer of ERC-20 tokens between Solana and Neon EVM via non-custodial wallets.
NeonFaucet:
Provides NEON test tokens and other ERC-20 test tokens for application testing on DevNet.

If you have a product to deploy on the Neon EVM, you can use this form to become part of the ecosystem.

Neon Ecosystem Roadmap:

The Neon EVM project, initiated in Q2/2021 with a $40 million investment, has progressed through phases such as pre-alpha, alpha, and beta. The already initiated Post Beta Phase from the second half of 2023 and 2024 includes milestones like interoperability with Solana smart contracts, integration with major Ethereum tools, and a grants program to encourage ecosystem development.

Impacts of The Neon Ecosystem on Solana:

The Neon EVM ecosystem has significantly impacted the Solana blockchain in areas such as developer adoption, scalability, cost-efficiency, and liquidity flow.

Developer Adoption:
Neon EVM has facilitated the entry of Ethereum developers into the Solana space, enriching the talent pool and contributing a variety of new applications and projects.
Scalability and Cost-Efficiency:
Leveraging Solana’s high-throughput architecture, Neon EVM enables dApps to handle more transactions at lower costs, enhancing the scalability of the Solana network.
Liquidity and Capital Flow:
The bridge facilitated by Neon EVM between Ethereum and Solana has deepened liquidity within both ecosystems, fostering a smoother flow of capital.

Contributions of Neon Projects to the Solana Ecosystem:

Neon projects, whether in decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), or other innovative use cases, play a pivotal role in shaping and extending Solana’s functionality and user base.

Pros & Cons of Neon EVM

NEON Tokenomics

The NEON tokenomics serve a dual purpose, acting both as a utility and governance token within the Neon EVM ecosystem:

Utility Token: NEON functions as a utility token, akin to ETH in Ethereum, used for transaction fees on the Neon platform. Users engage in streamlined payment processes, enhancing the overall user experience by paying NEON to operators for executing transactions.
Governance Token: NEON empowers holders to actively participate in the Neon DAO, allowing them to propose and vote on protocol changes. This democratic process ensures that the community plays a pivotal role in shaping the future trajectory of Neon EVM.

Token Allocation:

Personal Excitement About Neon EVM:

What excites me most about Neon EVM is not only on it’s potential to bridge the gap between Ethereum and Solana, fostering collaboration between two prominent blockchain ecosystems, but a commitment of the Neon team towards empowering builders on the ecosystem. This synergy unlocks new possibilities for developers and users, driving innovation and expanding the horizons of decentralized technologies.

You can become a part of the Neon EVM community, innovate and make contributions to the biggest blockchains.

Conclusion:

Neon EVM embodies the collaborative spirit of the blockchain community, driving a future where interoperability and scalability function hand in hand. Its impact on the Solana ecosystem is multi-faceted, ranging from technical enhancements to economic growth and global recognition. Neon EVM positions Solana as an attractive and dynamic blockchain ecosystem capable of accommodating a diverse array of applications and contributors.

References:

Neon EVM – Medium. (n.d.-b). Medium. https://medium.com/@neon_evm
Neon EVM - the first parallelized EVM. (n.d.). https://neonevm.org/
Quick Start | Neon Docs. (n.d.). https://docs.neonevm.org/docs/quick_start
Shin, E. (2023, December 29). What is Neon EVM? DataWallet. https://www.datawallet.com/crypto/what-is-neon-evm