Crank vs Solana Agent Kit¶
The main difference is custody and enforcement: Solana Agent Kit's toolkit takes your agent's raw private key directly (typically via an environment variable) and does not document a server-enforced policy engine; Crank never receives a key at all — it returns an unsigned transaction for your own wallet to sign, and checks a wallet policy you set before that transaction is even built. Both are open-source, Solana-native, and cover a wide range of DeFi protocols. Solana Agent Kit is the more established general-purpose Solana toolkit; Crank is trading infrastructure with custody and guardrails as the starting design constraint.
Comparison¶
| Dimension | Crank | Solana Agent Kit |
|---|---|---|
| Custody model | Non-custodial by construction: value-bearing tools return an unsigned transaction; the wallet owner's own key signs it. No code path transmits, stores, or logs a key. | The SolanaAgentKit constructor takes the wallet's raw base58 private key directly as an argument; guides reference storing it in an environment variable (for example, alongside the OKX DEX integration example). The key lives in the agent process. |
| Server-enforced guardrails | A wallet policy (max trade size, daily limit, token allowlist/banlist, position limit, drawdown limit, kill switch) is enforced server-side on every value-bearing call, on a wallet the owner still controls. | No server-enforced spending limits, allowlists, or kill switch are documented; the toolkit builds and signs what the calling code tells it to. |
| Chain focus | Solana. | Solana, with cross-chain bridging to other networks via deBridge and Wormhole. |
| DeFi / protocol coverage | Jupiter-routed swaps; perps via a multi-venue adapter (Jupiter Perps primary); lending, liquid staking, tokenized equities, strategies. | 20+ protocol integrations documented, including Jupiter, Raydium, Orca, Meteora, Manifest, and Openbook; perps via Adrena Protocol and Drift Protocol. |
| MCP support | One hosted MCP endpoint (mcp.crank.ing) is the primary interface; also exported as OpenAI, Gemini, and LangChain tool definitions from the same registry. |
Not part of the core toolkit; a companion project (sendaifun/solana-mcp) wraps it as an MCP server. The wrapped server still takes the raw private key via environment variable. |
| Paper / simulate-first trading | Yes — real mainnet quotes, simulated fills, identical tool surface, graduates to live without code changes. | Not documented. |
| Durable agent memory | Private per-wallet decision journal with automatic outcome attribution (realized P&L, fees, slippage) across sessions. | LangChain integration references general-purpose "memory management for persistent interactions"; no cross-session decision journal or outcome attribution is documented. |
| License | Proprietary hosted service; MCP protocol is open. | Apache-2.0, open source. |
| Cost | Reads free; a technology service fee applies to value-bearing actions (volume-tiered, per-action floor — see the fee schedule). | Free, open source; the underlying venues' own network and protocol fees still apply. |
The short version¶
If you want a free, open-source Solana toolkit and are comfortable managing keys and any spending limits inside your own application, Solana Agent Kit covers a broad set of protocols and is actively used in the MCP ecosystem through its companion server. If you want an agent to hold no key at all, with spending limits the server enforces on a wallet you still control and a paper mode to prove the flow first, that is what Crank is built around. See the mechanics: How AI agents trade non-custodially.
Sources¶
- Custody model, guardrails, protocol coverage, memory:
github.com/sendaifun/solana-agent-kit— README (root and OKX DEX integration example), checked 2026-07-22. - MCP wrapper and its key handling:
github.com/sendaifun/solana-mcp— README, checked 2026-07-22. - License:
github.com/sendaifun/solana-agent-kit— repository license file (Apache-2.0), checked 2026-07-22. - Crank custody model, gate stack, fee schedule: this docs site — non-custodial trading guide, authentication & x402, fee schedule.
Comparison reflects Solana Agent Kit's publicly documented capabilities as of the date above and may change; verify against its current documentation before depending on it. Solana Agent Kit is a project of its own maintainers (SendAI); its name is used here for identification only, with no affiliation implied. Crank is a non-custodial technology provider, not a broker-dealer or investment adviser; nothing on this page is financial advice.