Crypto traders are talking about Solana thanks to fresh ETF rumors. Reports in June 2025 say US regulators might greenlight a spot SOL ETF in the next month or so. That optimism has everyone eyeing not just SOL but the whole Solana ecosystem. One token getting attention is Jito (JTO). Think of JTO as a “beta play” on the Solana bull run, similar to Jupiter (JUP), giving extra leverage on Solana’s growth. It’s worth understanding what Jito actually does and what’s new in its world.
What is Jito?
Jito is a core piece of Solana’s infrastructure, basically a liquid staking and validator boost platform. In simple terms, it lets people stake SOL (and soon other tokens) but still use their tokens. When you stake with Jito, you get back a liquid token (often called JitoSOL) that you can trade or use in DeFi. Meanwhile, Jito’s special validator software earns extra fees (“tips” or MEV, maximal extractable value) on Solana transactions. Those extra rewards make staking through Jito more lucrative. In fact, crypto news notes that Jito is the leading liquid staking protocol on Solana, with about $.5 billion staked through its system. Its JitoSOL token helps “decentralize Solana” and capture staking + MEV rewards.
JTO itself is Jito’s governance token, launched via a big airdrop in late 2023. Early Solana users who helped secure the network got JTO for free. (The token gives holders a say in Jito’s rules and future.) Importantly, JTO does not yet automatically share in protocol fees. Those earnings sit in a DAO treasury for now. Jito’s team and community are currently deciding the best way to use those earnings for token holders (via fee switches, buybacks, etc.).
Why Jito Stands Out
Jito has serious fundamentals, especially for a relatively new project. It commands roughly 90–96% of all SOL staking on Solana. In other words, almost every Solana validator runs Jito’s client or accepts JitoSOL, a sign of how dominant it is. This scale means Jito handles most staking fees on Solana. In fact, Blockworks reports that the bulk of on-chain fees (Solana “tips”) flow through Jito, and the Jito DAO takes a 2.7% cut of those fees. At current activity rates, that cut could generate around $40 million per year for the project.
Revenues have also grown hugely. For example, one analysis charted Jito’s weekly fee income climbing from under $1.5K/week a year ago to over $1.4 million/week today. In plain terms, Jito’s business is scaling fast. The team behind it is experienced too: they’ve already expanded the core dev and business team in 2025 (hiring a DeFi lawyer and ex-trader as C-suite). All these facts, huge TVL, dominant market share, and growing fees, suggest strong fundamentals for Jito.
Jito’s Latest Updates
Jito hasn’t been standing still. A big recent push was “Restaking”, an open-source module launched in 2024 that lets projects stake multiple tokens in Jito vaults. Developers can now deposit tokens (like SOL or other assets) into Jito and mint new liquid tokens (like rSOL, rOtherToken) in a flexible system. This is a Solana-friendly version of Ethereum’s hot restaking trend. Jito’s restaking code is live and has already outpaced smaller Solana rivals. One report notes Jito’s user base dwarfs other Solana restaking attempts.
Beyond new tech, the Jito teams are growing. In early 2025 Jito Labs (the dev arm) added a seasoned DeFi lawyer, and the Jito Foundation (the ecosystem arm) brought in a former Wall Street quant as Chief Commercial Officer. Then in May 2025 the Jito DAO appointed Nick Almond (formerly of Factory Labs) as “head of governance”. His role is to guide the DAO’s strategy, for example, figuring out how to turn Jito’s big fee revenue into tangible benefits for JTO holders. These hires and moves show Jito’s leaders preparing to handle more growth on Solana.
JTO Token & Institutional Spotlight
Meanwhile, JTO the token is gaining notice in more places. In mid-2025, Grayscale Research updated its quarterly “Top 20 crypto assets” list and added JTO (alongside Jupiter, JUP) as a pick for Q1 2025. (This is a research recommendation, not a trading tip.) Inclusion on that list means big firms are watching JTO as a high-potential asset. It’s worth noting Grayscale also listed JUP, hinting that both Jupiter and Jito are viewed as levered Solana plays.
As of now, JTO can be traded on major Solana-friendly venues (DEXs and some CEXs). Its main value comes from being a governance token of a rapidly growing protocol. If Jito’s staking ecosystem expands (for instance, via a new Solana ETF fueling demand), JTO holders could benefit from any well-designed rewards plan the DAO adopts. But again, the point is what Jito does, not how high JTO’s price might go. Jito’s strong metrics and recent developments are what give it credibility in the Solana world.
Bottom Line
Jito (JTO) remains a technically solid cornerstone of Solana DeFi, far from a meme coin, powering the network’s largest liquid-staking engine and capturing real revenue from transaction fees.
That said, nothing here is financial advice.
Millionero’s mantra is always DYOR: dig into on-chain data, pore over the Jito DAO forum, and read deep dives on blog.millionero.com before pulling the trigger.
With SOL-ETF buzz brewing, Jito looks like a ground-level way to ride Solana’s momentum, but remember: hype fades, execution lasts.
If you decide to act, trade responsibly on Millionero, keep your risk in check, and let disciplined research, not euphoria, drive every move.