Spoiler: they are not killing, but rebooting the rules of the game. Here's why.
1. Meme coins vs. 'Serious' projects: Who is better?
- Fundamentals vs. Virality: Bitcoin and Ethereum are built on technology, while DOGE, SHIB, and PEPE are based on culture and community. However, in 2024, the market capitalization of the top 3 meme coins exceeded $50 billion, competing with traditional altcoins.
- Profitability: In the first 6 months of 2024, meme coins yielded profits of up to 2400%, leaving DeFi, GameFi, and even RWA tokens behind.
- Liquidity: PEPE surpassed DOGE in daily trading volumes ($494 million vs. $407 million), while SHIB became the foundation for an entire ecosystem (ShibaSwap, NFTs, metaverse).
2. Why are meme coins the 'new bitcoin'?
- Decentralization 2.0: Bitcoin created financial freedom, while meme coins created cultural freedom. Their value is determined not by whitepapers, but by memes, influencers, and mainstream adoption (for example, Elon Musk's support for DOGE).
- Growth speed: PEPE reached a market capitalization of $1.6 billion in 3 weeks — faster than BTC in 2009-2011.
- Public trust: 40% of DOGE and SHIB holders are 'small investors' who believe in the power of community more than in algorithms.
3. Arguments 'against': Why crypto won't die
- Meme coins = marketing engine: They attract new users to crypto. For example, after PEPE was listed on Binance, the influx of newcomers increased by 27%.
- Bitcoin remains 'digital gold': Even with the rise of meme coins, 70% of institutional investments go into BTC and ETH.
- Technologies vs. Hype: Solana, AI blockchains, and DeFi 3.0 are developing in parallel, offering real use cases.
4. What's next? Trends 2025
- Hybrid projects: Meme coins with utility (like FLOKI with the Valhalla metaverse or SHIB with NFTs).
- Deflationary models: PEPE burns 2% of tokens per transaction — this is closer to the economy of BTC than to DOGE.
Conclusion
Meme coins do not kill crypto — they make it louder, more accessible, and riskier. DOGE, SHIB, and PEPE are not the new bitcoin, but a new stage in the evolution of the crypto market, where culture and speculation go hand in hand with technology.
👉 Are you for or against meme coins? Write in the comments! If the post gets 500 👍 — I'll do an analysis of 'TOP-5 meme coins that will explode in 2025' 🚀
