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ZEC $1,148 Solana postpones Shanghai Accelerate event after registration surge
The Solana Foundation postponed its Shanghai Accelerate event after registrations quadrupled overnight and exceeded the venue cap registered with local
Key takeaways
- Registrations quadrupled. Lily Liu said event registrations quadrupled overnight and exceeded the cap registered with local authorities.
- Shanghai opened the tour. Shanghai was scheduled to open a four-city Accelerate China tour, followed by Hangzhou, Shenzhen and Beijing.
- A similar 2025 case. In October 2025, a Solana event in Shenzhen was also cut short due to venue capacity and public-safety concerns.
What happened
The Solana Foundation postponed its Solana Accelerate event in Shanghai after pre-registration exceeded the event cap set by local authorities, according to Lily Liu, president of the Solana Foundation. Liu wrote in a Friday X post that event registration quadrupled overnight following publicity for the event, and organizers decided to postpone it to comply with local requirements.
The event was programmed to be held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Shanghai on October 16. Social media reports indicated that attendees arrived at the designated venue and were left waiting for over an hour to access the event.
Liu said the foundation postponed the event until it can better accommodate the breadth and scale of its community, and apologized to attendees who traveled to be part of the experience. She said registrations far exceeded the event cap registered with local authorities and that there was no way to prevent people from overwhelming the venue.
First $122.11Latest $104.35-14.5% over the period
Points are daily observations, not closing prices.
Why it matters
Shanghai was scheduled to open Solana's four-city Accelerate China tour, followed by Hangzhou on Sunday, Shenzhen on Tuesday and Beijing on Thursday, according to the event's website. The postponement followed Solana executives' promotion of a new Shanghai office earlier this week.
China prohibits a range of crypto-related services, including token fundraising, trading and mining. In February, the People's Bank of China and seven other agencies doubled down on those restrictions in a notice that added new bans, including unauthorized issuance of yuan-pegged stablecoins.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao weighed in on the postponement, saying, "Sad to see. Looks like they really didn't know the local policies?" He also hinted at the enforcement of China's anti-crypto policies as the real reason behind postponing the convention.
What is still unclear
- Photos suggesting the presence of law enforcement offices and first-hand accounts of officials blocking access to the venue point to local authorities canceling the event due to its cryptocurrency links, even when no talk was directed at this topic per the Accelerate Shanghai program.
- Other Chinese crypto sources pointed out that the heavy publicity surrounding the event and the promotion of an office established by the foundation gave it a high profile, with authorities stepping in to dismantle the event and enforce local crypto policies put in place since 2021 and recently reinforced by the People's Bank of China.
Questions readers ask
Why was the Solana Shanghai event postponed?
Solana Foundation President Lily Liu said event registrations quadrupled overnight and far exceeded the event cap registered with local authorities. She said organizers postponed the event to comply with local requirements.
Where was the Solana Accelerate Shanghai event held?
The event was programmed to be held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Shanghai on October 16.
Was there a similar Solana event issue in China before?
Yes. In October 2025, a Solana event in Shenzhen was also cut short due to venue capacity and public-safety concerns, Solana's Chinese-language community account announced then on X.
What did Changpeng Zhao say about the postponement?
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said, "Sad to see. Looks like they really didn't know the local policies?" He also hinted at the enforcement of China's anti-crypto policies as the real reason behind postponing the convention.
