In the wonderful world of cryptocurrency, Meme coins have become a unique and dazzling sight, igniting a series of wealth celebrations that have captured attention.
From its development history, Dogecoin, born in 2013,
(DOGE) can be regarded as the ancestor of Meme coins. It was initially just a humorous satire by programmers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer on the speculative bubble in the cryptocurrency market, stepping into the market with a tone of jest based on the Scrypt algorithm.
However, no one expected that the enthusiastic promotion by the 'Dogecoin Army' community would cause the influence and value of DOGE to soar, ushering in a new era for Meme coins. Since then, the Meme coin family has continued to grow, with SHIB, PEPE, and others making their appearances and showcasing their talents in the market.
Entering 2024 - 2025, the Meme coin market is even more bustling, with high interest continuing. According to reports from market makers DWF Labs, the market capitalization of Meme coins surged from $20 billion at the beginning of 2024 to $120 billion by the end of the year, an increase of 500%, becoming an emerging asset class in the digital economy that cannot be ignored. In 2025, the price of the Luce token skyrocketed from its issuance price of $0.00009033 to $0.05, with a maximum increase of nearly a thousand times, astonishing many and triggering dozens of imitation projects. MUSK coin also rose dramatically, increasing by 240% within 24 hours, reaching a peak of $0.037, with the involvement of the Musk family adding to its potential as a catalyst for the next wave of explosion. Even TRUMP, launched by the elected president of the United States, has stirred waves in the market, opening at $0.1824, rising over 15,000% to about $30 within 12 hours, peaking at $75.35. Shortly after Melania Trump launched MELANIA, its price also exceeded $18.
The popularity of Meme coins can be attributed to various reasons. From the perspective of market psychology, their low entry barriers and high volatility characteristics have given many retail investors hope for 'getting rich overnight'. With prices as low as several decimal points, one can participate with just a few hundred dollars, fantasizing about achieving a hundredfold or even thousandfold increase in wealth. Community-driven dynamics and celebrity effects have also played a significant role, as a tweet from celebrities like Elon Musk or recommendations from KOLs can become catalysts for price surges. During a bull market, investors want to 'take a chance' for high returns, while in a bear market, they hope to 'bet on a rebound' with Meme coins, making them the 'adrenaline' of the crypto market, amplifying market sentiment.
From a technical and ecological perspective, Solana's ability to shine in the Meme coin space is no coincidence. It can handle thousands of transactions per second, with nearly zero fees, making it very suitable for the high-frequency trading characteristics of Meme coins. At the same time, platforms like Pump.fun have emerged, allowing users to issue their own Meme coins in just a few minutes, greatly stimulating market vitality and attracting over a million projects. Meanwhile, in the entire cryptocurrency market, the approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs and Ethereum spot ETFs has led mainstream capital to concentrate, causing new investors to focus more on the Meme coin sector, which has viral effects, wealth creation effects, and herd effects. Moreover, many crypto VC projects that have been 'long without results but still issuing coins' are draining market liquidity, leading retail investors to lose confidence in 'value coins' and further prompting capital to flow towards Meme coins.
However, behind this seemingly prosperous Meme coin frenzy lies significant risks. From the perspective of value support, most Meme coins lack actual value backing, primarily relying on market sentiment and social media hype. Digital economist Gao Zelong, vice president of the Beijing Consensus Blockchain Research Institute, has noted that Meme coins lacking actual support may be subject to price bubbles, and once market sentiment shifts, prices may drop rapidly. Once market enthusiasm fades and investor sentiment turns, prices are very likely to plummet significantly.
Regulatory risk is also a looming sword of Damocles. As the Meme coin market continues to expand, regulatory agencies are paying increasing attention to it. In countries like Thailand, Meme coins are treated as illegal underground goods; the UK Financial Conduct Authority views Meme coins as 'unregulated non-standard financial products'. If regulatory policies tighten, Meme coins may face stricter regulations or even bans on trading, leading to a large outflow of market funds and price corrections.
The volatility of mainstream cryptocurrencies will also affect Meme coins. Liu Lei, a senior partner at Beijing Yingke (Shanghai) Law Firm, pointed out that in the current market environment, investor confidence in cryptocurrencies is holistic. When mainstream coins like Bitcoin experience a significant drop, market risk sentiment rises, and panic can spread to the Meme coin market. For example, during Bitcoin's 6% drop on January 19, over 370,000 people in the cryptocurrency market faced liquidation, with total liquidations reaching $1.098 billion, impacting the Meme coin market as well.
The Meme coin market is like a crazy adventure, filled with the temptation of sudden wealth and the risk of losing everything. For investors wishing to participate, it is crucial to remain rational and calm, and not to blindly follow the crowd. It is important to pay attention to community activity, be wary of 'pump and dump traps', and diversify investments to keep the proportion of Meme coin investments within 5% of total assets. Furthermore, from a long-term perspective, seeking projects with 'narrative upgrades' and technological empowerment while keeping an eye on regulatory dynamics will help avoid becoming a 'victim' in this uncertain market, achieving relatively stable investments.