Helius Labs CEO, Solana co-founder disagree over tokenization

Helius Labs CEO Mert Mumtaz and one of Solana’s co-founders, Anatoly “Toly” Yakovenko, publicly aired differing opinions on X around the polarizing topic of tokenization.

The Solana camp has always been close-knit and closely bonded by a shared underdog mentality, callused by challenges like downtimes after it burst onto the scene as the “Ethereum Killer.” So, when major parties have a clash of ideals, it tends to get noticed. 

Why create a token?

The exchange between Toly and Mert began after the Solana co-founder responded to a post by the latter asking why a wallet needs a token. 

“Is there some use for it that I’m missing?” He asked, to which Toly wrote, “Everything with revenues should have a token.” 

Pushing for an explanation, Mert asked, “Why?” and Toly says, “So then the profits could be returned to token holders.” 

In the comment section, users were also divided. While some acknowledged the logic in Toly’s position, others leaned towards Mert’s view that wallets are essential infrastructure that risk becoming something else when tokenization is involved. 

Toly’s response seems to be more about democratizing ownership than anything else, and it paves the way for regular users to benefit as opposed to just VCs or a centralized team.

Mert seemed to disagree as he replied with a sarcastic “should I release token?” 

The exchange is only an example of the debates about tokenization going on all over the ecosystem as the space further matures. 

Just days earlier, Mert ignited a round of debate after floating the idea of a Solana-aligned stablecoin in a conversation about tokenized treasuries and stablecoins, which is an easy way to capture yield on-chain.

Mert stirred debate on Solana stablecoins 

On September 10, Mert floated the idea of a Solana-aligned stablecoin whose reserve yield would be redirected to SOL via buybacks or burns—either as an “enshrined” protocol feature or, more likely, via competing digital-asset treasury companies (DATs).

“Warming up to the idea that Solana should enshrine a stablecoin,” he wrote, adding that “50% burn of the yield goes back to burning SOL.” Hours later, he reiterated: “It shouldn’t be enshrined, a DAT should do it… fix it and trillions.”

Mumtaz’s core critique focuses on what he describes as “yield leakage” from Solana. “Stablecoins are commodities, and currently on Solana, there is one that captures all yield and literally funds Solana’s biggest competitor with it!” 

As far as he is concerned, under the US GENIUS Act, stables are readily swappable and issuers will compete aggressively for market share—something that is already being seen with the recent “Bachelor-style” scramble among large stablecoin companies to court business. 

“If you don’t want to enshrine a Solana-centric stable, then consider digital asset treasury companies (DATs)… The DAT is literally a machine for buying the underlying token.”

That framing clashes with the GENIUS Act, which carves out “payment stablecoins” as neither securities nor commodities for US federal purposes, consolidating oversight largely under banking regulators and expressly separating them from SEC/CFTC jurisdiction. 

Since stablecoins cannot pass interest to holders, issuers (or affiliated structures) capture the reserve income and can decide how to use it, and this is the lever Mumtaz wants pointed back at Solana.