A Comprehensive SEI Review & Comparison to Leading Blockchains

Sei, a popular and rapidly growing blockchain in today's markets, has been a subject of much discussion within my circles. Recent conversations with developers (DEVs) and CEOs, who are closely examining what SEI offers, inspired me to independently explore what SEI is all about.

Here's what I learned.

What is SEI?

SEI is positioned as one of the fastest Layer 1s in blockchain. The SEI project has garnered plenty of attention for its commitment to enabling mass adoption of digital assets by deploying an extremely powerful chain, with enormous adoption taking place, but not everything has been bells and whistles for the SEI project.

In this review I will do my best to dive into Sei's features, market dynamics, and assess how it stacks up against other prominent blockchains, including Fantom, and Polygon. I also give you my personal thoughts, and evaluate the possible future for this jet fast chain.

A Deep Dive into SEI

Sei, a layer-1 blockchain built on the Cosmos software development kit, aims to revolutionize decentralized exchanges (DEXs) by enhancing their trading capabilities. In response to pending and recent regulatory crackdowns on centralized exchanges, Sei Labs positioned Sei as the solution for handling increased on-chain volume, making it a crucial player in the evolving landscape of decentralized applications (dApps).

SEI Speed and Efficiency:

Sei claims to be the fastest layer-1 blockchain, boasting a 500ms finality, ten times faster than Solana's average time to finality of five seconds. This remarkable speed positions Sei as a formidable contender in the fast-paced world of blockchain technology. The Sei Network's testnet results showcase its potential, albeit competing with Nano (XNO), which reports an average finality of less than 400ms on the mainnet.

The SEI token plays a multifaceted role within the network, contributing to the seamless functionality of the Sei blockchain. Its key functions encompass:

1. Network Fees: SEI facilitates the payment of transaction fees on the Sei blockchain, ensuring smooth and efficient transactions.

2. DPoS Validator Staking: SEI holders possess the flexibility to delegate their holdings with validators or stake SEI to operate their own validator, actively participating in securing the network.

3. Governance: SEI holders wield the power to engage in the future governance of the protocol, contributing to the decision-making processes that shape the network's trajectory.

4. Native Collateral: SEI serves as native asset liquidity or collateral for applications built on the Sei blockchain, enhancing the versatility and utility of the token.

5. Fee Markets: Users can opt to pay a tip to validators, prioritizing their transactions and fostering a system where such tips can be shared with users delegating to that specific validator.

6. Trading Fees: SEI holds significance as trading fees on exchanges constructed on the Sei blockchain, further solidifying its role in the operational framework of the platform.

Market Presence:

Sei holds its place among the top 100 cryptocurrencies. With a total supply of 10 billion SEI and only 1.8 billion currently circulating.

Sei's fully diluted market cap is $918.41M at the time of this article's publication. A lower market cap than previously recorded after launching, but a correction of such can imply that the asset is highly undervalued in the markets, as adoption has not failed to remain staunch for growth.

Future Price Predictions:

Based on historical price movements and BTC halving cycles, Sei's yearly low price prediction for 2024 is estimated at $0.32+, while a high of $0.5206+ has been predicted for the next year. These projections extend to 2030, offering a glimpse into Sei's potential growth trajectory, but leaves questions unanswered, as far as the markets themselves and pending regulatory developments.

Despite minor bumps at its launch, including frustration over an airdrop process, Sei's mainnet launch led to over 3,000% value appreciation in 24 hours.

The SEI Airdrop Controversy:

As with every project, launches can have some serious bumps and hurdles, and SEI was no exception. 

Having to face some serious scrutiny and frustration shortly after its launch with a much-anticipated airdrop of new tokens, the event turned into a moment of extreme FUD and community turmoil within SEI's community. While this is a negative, to seasoned veterans on the other hand, we know how airdrops can play out. (Having witnessed 100s of airdrops/earndrops from both sides of the counter, let me tell you what's what. From the user side it all seems like a few clicks should work out the issues, but from the project side, it's an overwhelming process that takes tremendous amounts of time, energy, and resources to sort out.)

The promised airdrop to investors who bridged Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Binance Smart Chain (BNB) to the Sei Network (SEI) led to confusion and disappointment due to a lack of details on the claiming process. Investors faced a so-called "warmup period" announcement before SEI tokens were distributed, adding to the frustration surrounding this aspect of the project. Also, the number of participants were not anticipated to be as high as they were, and sorting out distribution did take some time.

Key Features of Sei:

"SEI's umparalleled speed and scalability with a transactional throughput of 20,000 operations per second, lets Sei stand out as the fastest blockchain in the industry."

Security and Integrity: Secured by reputable institutions, Sei prioritizes security, featuring a robust infrastructure safeguarding digital assets.

User-Centric Design: As an open-source platform, Sei provides native frontrunning protection, seamless interoperability, and transaction bundling, ensuring fairness.

Comparing SEI to Leading Blockchains:

A side-by-side analysis of Sei against Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Harmony, Fantom, and Polygon reveals Sei's impressive transactional throughput (20,000 ops) and finality (380 ms), placing it as a competitive option in the market.

SEI's Market and Chain Dynamics:

Sei's substantial funding and valuation growth, with achievements like reaching a valuation of $800 million and securing commitments from major investors, underline its strong market presence.

Comparative Analysis of SEI vs. Other Leading Blockchains

• Bitcoin:

  • Transactional Throughput: 10 tps
  • Transactional Finality: 60 min
  • Frontrunning Prevention: None
  • Processing Style: Sequential
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Work

• Ethereum:

  • Transactional Throughput: 20 tps
  • Transactional Finality: 6 mins
  • Frontrunning Prevention: None
  • Processing Style: Sequential
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Stake

• Solana:

  • Transactional Throughput: 10,000 tps
  • Transactional Finality: ~2.5 sec
  • Frontrunning Prevention: None
  • Processing Style: Parallelized
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Stake

• Harmony (ONE):

  • Transactional Throughput: Varies
  • Transactional Finality: Varies
  • Frontrunning Prevention: Varies
  • Processing Style: Varies
  • Sybil Protection: Varies

• Fantom:

  • Transactional Throughput: 4,000 tps
  • Transactional Finality: ~1 sec
  • Frontrunning Prevention: None
  • Processing Style: Lachesis DAG
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Stake

• Polygon (MATIC):

  • Transactional Throughput: ~7,000 tps
  • Transactional Finality: ~2 mins
  • Frontrunning Prevention: None
  • Processing Style: Ethereum-compatible
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Stake

SEI SPEEDS:

• Transactional Throughput: 20,000 ops

  • Transactional Finality: 380 ms
  • Frontrunning Prevention: ✔ (FBA)
  • Processing Style: Parallelized
  • Sybil Protection: Proof of Stake

• Recent Achievements:
  • Foresight Ventures brings Sei Ecosystem Fund to $120 million.
  • Sei raises $30 million, reaching a valuation of $800 million.
  • Sei Labs secures a $50 million commitment from Bitget and Foresight Ventures.
  • Sei Network, with $70 million in ecosystem funding, continues to expand.

Beta's Conclusion:

SEI looks to become a promising blockchain investment, offering unparalleled speed, robust security, and notable market successes. When compared to Solana, Fantom, and Polygon, Sei holds its ground with impressive transactional throughput and efficient finality.

A rough start can lead to a beautiful finish, and how many airdrops have you seen go flawlessly?

Not many...

However, as with any investment, readers are urged to conduct thorough research and consider individual risk tolerance. DYOR!! This is not investment advice! 

Please tip using Publish0x tips or send SEI to: sei1ymzd3q4mzl3hl3r084lne8tuh5x4n773n3kgh3

Disclaimer: This review is independent. Of course the author does own tokens of the mentioned blockchain. Therefore, this article is not financial advice, and readers are encouraged to seek professional advice before making any investment decisions.

All of the provided content in this artice was intended for, and as entertainment and informational purposes only, any expressed opinions or other information pertaining to predictive comments about value are formed based on the author's own perspective, and not expressed as professional advice or analysis.

The author is NOT a professional financial advisor or legal professional, all opinions are based on the author's own individual opinion, not based financial advice! Therefore, do not misconstrue the content on this page and in this article as financial or investment advice.

Consult a licensed financial advisor before taking any risks with your own financial security.