From Fantom to Sonic (S): Enhancing speed and scalability in DeFi

Launched in 2019, Fantom has long been regarded as one of the leading Ethereum virtual machine (EVM)–compatible blockchains. For years, the blockchain has been highly valued by decentralized application (DApp) developers and operators for its high-performance characteristics. In over five years of operation, until early 2025, Fantom has attracted hundreds of DApps in decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and other niches.

In August 2024, the Fantom team announced a significant rebranding and migration to a new blockchain platform, Sonic. Four months later, in December 2024, the Sonic chain’s mainnet was officially launched. 

A key part of the migration process has been the transition from Fantom’s FTM coin to Sonic’s S token, which was officially launched in January 2025 at a 1:1 rate to FTM. While Fantom has always been known as a fast, scalable blockchain, Sonic takes these technical advantages to a completely new level, boasting a throughput of 10,000 transactions per second (TPS) and a sub-second transaction finality.

In addition to technical improvements, Sonic has introduced an attractive developer incentive program that’s not only generous, but also has the potential to significantly accelerate DApp growth on the new platform.

With the launch of Sonic and the migration from FTM to S, Fantom’s team is opening a new era in the project’s history, one in which the platform’s well-regarded technical features are being combined with an unprecedented developer incentivization drive. This could potentially position the new Sonic chain as a major force in the world of EVM-compatible blockchains.