Galaxy Research has thrown down the gauntlet against Solana’s inflation model, proposing a radical shift in how the network governs its token emission. On April 17, 2025, the research firm introduced MESA (Multiple Election Stake-Weight Aggregation), a voting mechanism designed to break the binary decision deadlock that has stalled previous inflation reform attempts.
Galaxy’s MESA proposal tackles Solana’s governance paralysis, offering a weighted multi-choice alternative to binary inflation voting.
The timing couldn’t be more critical. Solana currently operates with roughly 4.6% annual inflation, gradually decreasing through a 15% annual “dis-inflation” rate toward a 1.5% long-term target. This trajectory became even more contentious after May 2024’s SIMD-96 adjustment to priority fee distribution, which effectively increased annualized inflation.
The community’s frustration was palpable when SIMD-228, a market-based inflation proposal, fell short of the required supermajority in March 2025 despite capturing 61.39% support.
“It’s like asking someone if they want coffee, when what they really need is options on temperature, size, and cream,” one validator commented on the current yes/no voting limitations.
MESA elegantly transforms this binary choice into a spectrum. Instead of simply voting yes or no, validators can select from multiple deflation rates – perhaps 15%, 20%, or 25% – with their choice weighted by their staked SOL. The final rate emerges as a weighted average of all votes cast, creating a collective market preference rather than an all-or-nothing outcome. The innovative proposal aims to provide more dynamic adjustments that respond effectively to changing market conditions. The implementation includes smart contract freezing mechanisms to protect against potential governance attacks.
The beauty of Galaxy’s proposal lies not in prescribing a specific inflation path but in reimagining the decision-making process itself. MESA doesn’t alter the 1.5% terminal inflation target; it simply offers a more nuanced way to determine how quickly Solana reaches that destination. This approach balances flexibility with stability while ensuring the community has greater input on economic policy decisions.
Under current parameters, the network would reach its target around epoch 2135, roughly 7.4 epoch years from now.
For a blockchain built on speed and efficiency, Solana’s governance has moved at a glacial pace when facing complex economic decisions. MESA might just be the catalyst that breaks this logjam, allowing the collective wisdom of stakeholders to chart a more responsive course through financial headwinds.
