Solana Foundation is expanding its leadership team as part of a broader effort to strengthen institutional adoption of the Solana blockchain and accelerate its role in global payments. The organization has appointed Rachel Conlan as Head of Strategy and Jamal Rees as General Manager for Payments. The appointments signal a new emphasis on partnerships with enterprises, payment companies, and financial institutions that can build practical applications on the network.
New Leadership Roles at Solana Foundation
Rachel Conlan will lead strategy for institutional partnerships and ecosystem expansion at Solana Foundation. She joins the organization after spending three years at Binance and previously held leadership roles at OKX, CAA Sports, and Havas. Her appointment is intended to accelerate relationships with enterprises, financial institutions, and companies that are building payments, financial services, and digital asset applications across the Solana ecosystem.
Payments Expertise from Polygon Labs
Jamal Rees joins Solana Foundation from Polygon Labs as General Manager for Payments. He will work alongside payment companies, institutions, and ecosystem participants to expand the use of Solana as infrastructure for global payments. His focus will include developing partnerships that move payment activity on-chain, support settlement use cases for businesses, and connect Solana with established financial providers.
Expanding Stablecoin Activity on Solana
The leadership appointments come as stablecoin usage on Solana continues to grow. According to foundation data, stablecoin transaction volume on the network has surpassed US$5 trillion since the beginning of the year. This increase reflects rising demand for fast, low-cost blockchain rails among payment companies, trading firms, and financial institutions seeking efficient settlement infrastructure at scale.
Tokenized Real-World Assets Gain Traction
Solana is also seeing broader adoption of tokenized financial assets beyond stablecoins. Tokenized real-world assets on the network have exceeded US$4.5 billion, and tokenized equities have surpassed US$620 million. These figures indicate that more issuers are using Solana to bring traditional assets on-chain, improve settlement efficiency, and expand access to financial products for a wider range of investors.
Strategic Partnerships for Institutional Use Cases
Solana Foundation is targeting deeper relationships with institutions and companies through its expanded leadership team. The organization wants to create practical applications in payments, financial services, and digital assets rather than rely on speculative activity alone. Earlier this year, it partnered with SBI Holdings to develop a blockchain-based financial market in Japan and launched a pay-as-you-go system for artificial intelligence agents with Google Cloud.
Broader Push Toward On-Chain Finance
The new appointments are part of a wider effort to move money, assets, and property rights onto blockchain networks. Solana Foundation is focused on increasing institutional use of its network and converting interest in digital asset technology into real applications in markets and payments. The senior hires are expected to strengthen the commercial relationships needed for that transition.
Solana Foundation is strengthening its commercial and strategic leadership as network activity expands across stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets, and tokenized equities. The new hires bring experience from major digital asset platforms and are expected to support deeper institutional adoption. With rising transaction volumes and new partnerships, the organization is positioning Solana as a practical infrastructure layer for global payments and financial services.