Solana Labs Opening 25,000-Square-Foot Office Space in NYC

Just months after Solana-themed brick and mortar stores in New York and Miami closed, Solana Labs has announced new office space. 

The company that works on the blockchain tech behind the 10th largest cryptocurrency by market cap will today open a 25,000-square-foot, 4-story community office space in Lower Manhattan, according to a Thursday announcement. 

Those working on Solana projects will be able to co-work in the space and Solana-related events will also take place there, the announcement added.

Solana Labs will not be disclosing what it paid to set up the office, a spokesperson told Decrypt. But the company did clarify that it’s renting the space.

“Solana Labs did not purchase the space. Solana Labs is a tenant of the 141 E Houston St.,” the spokesperson wrote in an email. “The company has a 10-year lease and occupies floors 6-9. 75% of the space is reserved for Solana ecosystem teams to co-work for free upon approval.”

“New York City has all the ingredients to be the global epicenter of Web3,” New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) President & CEO Andrew Kimball said. 

“It has the arts, culture, innovation, technology, and talent. It’s exciting to see the Solana community plant a flag right here in New York and let the world know the city is the place to build in blockchain.”

Solana Labs co-founder Raj Gokal said the company was “doubling down” to make sure “early-stage entrepreneurs have a place to build and collaborate.”

Solana is a blockchain platform which aims to compete with Ethereum. Its native token, SOL, has a market cap of $7.9 billion. 

The blockchain has a buzzing ecosystem—with developers working on non-fungible token (NFT) projects, decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols and even an android phone. 

But the ecosystem was hit hard following the collapse of behemoth digital asset exchange FTX in November; the failed crypto company had deep ties to Solana, so when it went bust, many investors sold their SOL holdings. 

Solana Spaces, crypto-themed retail storefronts, in February announced the closure of its company-owned and operated stores, citing the brutal crypto winter for the shuttering.