The Rise of MEME Tokens: From Internet Culture to a New Landscape in the Crypto Market

The rise of DOGE in 2021 marked the initial emergence of MEME Tokens, while the explosion of MEME in 2024 heralds a significant shift in market investment logic. MEME has become a popular investment category sought after by investment institutions and market funds, entering the mainstream investment arena.

Cultural Phenomenon Originating from the Internet

The origin of MEME predates blockchain technology and is rooted in internet culture. Currently successful MEME projects mostly stem from internet social trends. For example, Doge, SHIB, PEPE, etc., represent the communication and interaction generated globally through the internet, which is also the root of online culture, widely referred to as "grassroots culture."

MEME is everywhere, and behind every MEME is a story. These stories spread across the network to the world, bringing a sense of belonging to people, which is a key reason for the popularity of MEME. MEME sprouts in social platforms, chat software, forums, and continues to be known by more people. Social websites are the main battleground for the popularity of MEME and an important way for people to express opinions and vent emotions, distinguishing it from the mainstream and rigid online information.

MEME expresses people's thoughts in specific online contexts through concise means (short texts, innovative words, images, memes, etc.). Its widespread dissemination encourages those unfamiliar with MEME to understand and engage with it, spreading like a virus. The sense of belonging is the value behind MEME, and it is also the main driving force supporting the rise in MEME's price.

The Collision of MEME and Blockchain: Redemption in the Chaos of the Market

Blockchain technology has given value to many intangible things, and MEME is no exception. Strictly speaking, BTC was also a kind of MEME in its early days. After BTC became popular, a large number of worthless altcoins appeared, causing chaos in the market, and DOGE was born to satirize this phenomenon. The first popularity of DOGE occurred in the market after 2013, which can be seen as the era of MEME 1.0.

The proliferation of altcoins during the 2017 bull market and the confusion in the market again (ICO chaos) laid the foundation for the second rise of DOGE, which is also an important factor for DOGE's re-recognition in the market in 2021. Dog-themed MEME projects like SHIB also began to emerge, marking the entry of MEME into the 2.0 era.

Similarly, during this round of rise in 2024, the chaos of the market has transformed into the overvaluation of certain projects and many "value" projects' PUA towards users, and MEME has begun to develop again. The stagnation of the mainstream market to some extent represents the resistance of underlying investors against certain projects and the phenomenon of being cut. The fair distribution and price performance of MEME just address everyone's pain points, naturally attracting a lot of attention, and MEME has entered the 3.0 era.

The development history of MEME shows that an important reason for its popularity is the inaction and misbehavior of the mainstream market. As retail investors at the bottom, they do not have enough strength and funds to resist this behavior, so they can only turn in the opposite direction. What retail investors lack the least is enthusiasm and the ability to spread, which is also where its value lies, and it is also the fundamental factor for us to choose MEME.

Analysis of Potential MEME Characteristics

Not all MEME have investment value. Similar to the chaos of mainstream coins, the MEME sector is also rife with mixed quality, and the behavior of cutting leeks is everywhere, which may become more apparent in the future. For ordinary investors, it is crucial to identify potential MEME projects. We can summarize experiences by reviewing successful MEME projects.

Successful MEME project case

1. DOGE: Obtained through mining, it has a large supply and low price in the early stages, making it suitable for online tipping and supporting multiple social platforms. The community slogan "To The Moon" is well-known, and various MEME images circulate on social media.

2. SHIB: Themed around Shiba Inu, issued through a Fair Launch method, it has a large entertainment attribute. In terms of development direction, it continuously builds and aims to become a "value coin", such as launching DEX and tokens like BONE and the mainnet, exploring the path of MEME transitioning to value coins.

3. PEPE: A cryptocurrency based on the popular internet meme character Pepe the Frog, which has a strong user base. In addition to most of the funds being used for liquidity pools, it also includes a deflationary mechanism and a redistribution mechanism, attracting the attention of investors and institutional support.

4. WIF: A dog-themed MEME Token on a certain public chain, it is the third most successful dog-themed token in performance. It features low cost and fast transfer speed, with the creator's balance set to 0 to ensure the token's decentralization, endorsed by a certain celebrity, standing out among many dog coins.

5. PUFF: A MEME project primarily aimed at the mETH (Ethereum re-staked Token) community on a certain public chain, themed around dragons. It redefines the meme narrative, allowing users to obtain PUFF by minting a mysterious potion using mETH, and then establishing an AMM pool for free exchange. The actions of a well-known trader making a large purchase have made PUFF the focus of attention.

The common characteristics of popular MEME

1. Distribution method and low threshold: From mining through computing power to fair distribution, allowing community users to participate at a low cost and accumulate a large user base.

2. Shift in value perspective: Gradually transitioning from early uses in online culture to more value applications, such as DEX, deflationary mechanisms, and decentralization.

3. Celebrity Effect and Financial Support: The backing of celebrities, KOLs, or public figures for "bringing goods" and the support from institutional funds.

4. Price Performance: The price increase has allowed retail investors to profit, further enhancing the influence of the MEME Token.

5. Development Path: Unlike high financing projects, MEME projects usually start with retail investors and gradually attract institutions and exchanges.

The Development Prospects of MEME Coin

MEME coins that rely purely on hype find it difficult to gain sustained attention. For investors, economic models and application scenarios are factors that must be considered for long-term development.

Recently, MEME projects have begun to focus on long-term development, such as PUFF introducing mETH incentives, GameFi elements, etc., successfully attracting large investments. This indicates that the MEME project parties have started to pay attention to the sustainable development of the project, rather than short-term speculation.

MEME, as an early promotional tool, can quickly gather popularity and funds. However, to achieve long-term development, empowerment and planning are indispensable. Certain MEME projects bring huge traffic and transaction data to their respective public chains, demonstrating broader application prospects.

Conclusion

MEME has gained recognition from numerous investors, leveraging humor and internet culture as a user base, which easily resonates with users. This is a low-cost and fast way to penetrate the user market and build project communities, and it may become a main grassroots project's cold start strategy in the future.

However, projects that purely rely on the MEME concept find it difficult to sustain growth. Mid-term technological follow-up is crucial for attracting "regular forces" such as investment institutions and exchanges. In this process, chips may gradually shift from retail investors to institutions, promoting the transformation and expansion of the project. After making profits, retail investors often develop a greater sense of identity with MEME culture, forming a positive flywheel effect that helps MEME further break out.