Key Takeaways
Why is BNB seeking an ecosystem overhaul?
It seems the chain wants to position itself as more than just a gambling scene.
Will it lift BNB higher?
If the explosive chain traction continues, the $1.5K could be reachable
The BNB chain ecosystem is doubling down on expansion. YZi Labs, the investment vehicle of Binance’s founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ), has announced a $1B Builder Fund to support founders in the ecosystem.
The fund targets builders in DeFi, AI, tokenization, decentralized science (DeSci), and more, according to Ella Zhang, Head of YZi Labs.
She added that the chain is the ‘next phase of digital infrastructure’ with ‘real distribution’, citing its 460 million user base and recent network improvements.
The update was timely, just after BNB printed a new ATH and an explosive memecoin season that allowed it to top weekly DEX volume.
Ready to rival Solana?
Despite record on-chain traction, the ecosystem has been criticized for potentially offering nothing but gambling via memecoins.
According to a community member and pseudonymous crypto commentator, Frank Degods, the ecosystem had everything needed to pump tokens.
However, it may struggle to ship out solutions that address real pain points.
Source: X
The YZi Labs update arrived at a crucial moment, likely aiming to reposition the chain beyond its reputation as a gambling hub and counter such perceptions.
According to the firm, the chain is now faster and more cost-efficient—making it an ideal environment for developers and builders.
“The Maxwell Hardfork in May further improved network performance, cutting block times to 0.75 seconds and lowering its transaction fees to 0.05 Gwei, attracting a large inflow of users and builders to the BNB ecosystem.”
Despite recent updates, the chain’s Developer Activity has been declining since May, highlighting a slowdown in network development during the second half of 2025.
Source: Santiment
Compared to Solana, the Developer Activity surged in 2025 but eased in Q4. However, since late September, the metric recovered, illustrating steady network growth.
Source: Santiment
That said, in terms of DEX volume, BNB raked in $16B while Solana [SOL] ranked second with a $15B this week.
Interestingly, this wasn’t the first time BNB chain flipped Solana in memecoin traction. It pulled a similar outperformance earlier in the year,
Source: DeFiLlama
If the traction extends and BNB defends the $1K, the $1.5K price level could be the next bullish target.
Source: BNB/USDT, TradingView
