Toby vs Jito vs Sanctum

A side-by-side comparison of three approaches to MEV and staking on Solana, covering how Toby, Jito, and Sanctum differ in architecture, yield, and governance.

Three approaches to MEV and staking on Solana. Here's how they compare.

Solana's MEV and liquid staking market has matured fast. Jito pioneered MEV infrastructure on Solana, Sanctum built deep LST liquidity, and Toby is introducing OpenMEV: an open, permissionless layer designed to capture more value and distribute it more fairly. Each takes a different approach. This page lays out the facts so you can evaluate them on their own merits.

Comparison Table

Feature	Toby	Jito	Sanctum
Focus	OpenMEV infrastructure	MEV protocol	Staking / LST infrastructure
MEV approach	Open auction via Block Chef	Private MEV auction	Not MEV-focused
Sandwich protection	Filtered at protocol level	Limited	N/A
Staking token	genSOL (Phase-1), tSOL (future)	jitoSOL	Various LSTs via Infinity pool
Yield sources	Staking + MEV + governance	Staking + MEV	Staking yield
Data feed	Laser Stream (30-50% lower hardware cost)	Firehose (high hardware cost)	N/A
Validator selection	Validator Optimizer (3 novel filters)	Manual + basic metrics	Router-based
Governance	OpenMEV Council ($TOBY holders)	Foundation-led	DAO
Access model	Permissionless, open	Partially gated	Open

Where Each Excels

Jito: First Mover in Solana MEV

Jito deserves credit as the project that brought MEV infrastructure to Solana. Its validator network is well-established, and jitoSOL is one of the most liquid staking tokens on the network.

• ~$500M in annual revenue from MEV fees and tips

• 5% fee on MEV rewards + direct validator tips

• Large, proven validator set with strong uptime history

• Firehose data feed gives searchers access to real-time transaction flow

Jito's track record and liquidity make it the current default for many Solana validators and stakers.

Sanctum: Deep LST Ecosystem

Sanctum isn't competing on MEV. It's building the infrastructure layer for liquid staking tokens on Solana.

• Infinity pool provides unified liquidity across dozens of LSTs

• Wide variety of supported staking tokens

• Router-based validator selection for best yield routing

• DAO governance gives the community a voice in protocol direction

For users who want LST diversity and liquidity without MEV complexity, Sanctum fills a distinct role.

Toby: OpenMEV and Fair Value Distribution

Toby's thesis is that MEV should be an open, transparent market, not a gated one. The OpenMEV architecture is built around three core components:

1. Block Chef is an open auction where searchers compete transparently. No private deals, no hidden order flow.

2. Laser Stream is a data feed that requires 30-50% less hardware than Jito's Firehose, lowering the barrier for searchers and validators to participate.

3. Validator Optimizer uses three novel filtering criteria to select high-performance validators, going beyond basic uptime metrics.

Sandwich attacks are filtered at the protocol level. Harmful MEV is excluded before it reaches the block, not after.

The Revenue Opportunity

The numbers frame why MEV matters:

• $10B+ in real yield demand across Solana's ecosystem

• $42B total LST market across chains

• Jito currently captures roughly 20% of available MEV on Solana, generating ~$500M annually

Toby's open access model is designed to capture a much larger share of available MEV, potentially up to 70%, through permissionless auction mechanics and protocol-level sandwich filtering. The logic is straightforward:

More participants. Lower hardware costs (Laser Stream) mean more searchers can compete, creating more efficient price discovery.

Better filtering. Removing sandwich attacks from the mempool means the MEV that gets captured is legitimate arbitrage and liquidations, not value extracted from users.

Fairer distribution. The majority of captured value flows back to ecosystem participants (stakers, validators, searchers), not to a single operator.

These are projected outcomes based on Toby's architecture, not guarantees. Actual revenue will depend on adoption, validator participation, and market conditions.

Why Toby

For participants evaluating where to stake or which MEV infrastructure to build on, Toby's differentiators come down to four things:

1. Open and permissionless. No gatekeeping on who can participate as a searcher, validator, or staker. The auction is public.

2. Sandwich protection built in. Harmful MEV is filtered at the protocol level. End users are protected by default.

3. Community-governed. The OpenMEV Council, controlled by $TOBY holders, makes protocol decisions. No foundation unilaterally setting fees or parameters.

4. Lower infrastructure costs. Laser Stream's reduced hardware requirements mean participation isn't limited to well-capitalized operators.

More value gets created through broader participation. More value flows back to the ecosystem through fairer distribution. The system grows the overall pie rather than concentrating it.

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This comparison reflects publicly available information as of early 2026. All projected figures represent architectural potential, not guaranteed returns.