DeFi Development publishes new valuation framework

DeFi Development (DFDV) announced the publication of its latest research piece, “SOL and the Digital City: A New Way to Value Layer 1 Tokens,” introducing a valuation framework for SOL that departs from traditional revenue multiples, DCFs, and the monetary equation of exchange. The essay argues that conventional valuation tools, built for equities, currencies, and commodities, break in important ways when applied to Layer 1 tokens like SOL. In their place, the Company introduces the DFDV model, which treats Solana as a growing digital city where price is set by the imbalance between structurally scarce supply and the exogenous dollar demand required to operate within the network. The research covers: Why existing frameworks fall short: how DCFs, revenue multiples, and MV=PQ each fail to capture what actually drives SOL’s value, and why a new approach is needed. Supply side analysis: a breakdown of the four categories of structurally committed SOL and why roughly 90% of supply never hits the open market. Four sources of demand: RWA settlement collateral, stablecoin reserves, agentic AI, and consumer/network-native activity, each grounded in observable data and projected forward to maturity. Full sensitivity analysis: transparent assumptions, stress-testable inputs, and an open spreadsheet for investors to plug in their own numbers.