KEYTAKEAWAYS
- The Trump family’s Meme Coin and other digital assets ignited a memecoin boom, with Pump.Fun becoming a dominant player in the space by 2024.
- Pump.Fun allows easy creation of memecoins, lowering entry barriers, which led to explosive growth and controversy, including extreme promotional stunts by users.
- Critics view Pump.Fun as unregulated gambling, while founders envision it as a new social platform, blending blockchain with content creation and direct revenue sharing.
CONTENT
In 2025, the Trump family’s launch of Meme Coin (TRUMP Coin) created a massive stir in the cryptocurrency world, pushing memecoins to the forefront of the industry. TRUMP Coin saw its price skyrocket by 15,000% within just 12 hours of launch, leaving global investors stunned.
But this was just the beginning—almost the entire Trump family got involved, each launching their own digital assets, and the crypto market quickly shifted into what can only be described as a “digital currency game.”
The Trump family’s MemeCoin gained popularity fast, thanks not only to their immense influence and media attention but also because it perfectly coincided with the ongoing memecoin craze.
In 2024, memecoins became one of the hottest assets in the crypto space. The GMCI Meme Index, which tracks the leading meme tokens, saw an impressive 320% return over the year, far outpacing AI stocks and the top 30 cryptocurrencies.
(Source:Gmci)
In the midst of this memecoin frenzy, Pump.Fun emerged as a dominant player in the memecoin space. Within just one year, the platform generated hundreds of millions in revenue and is projected to reach over $1 billion in 2025, with a potential valuation of $10 billion to $20 billion. Pump.Fun’s success has sparked widespread debate: Is it a form of “financial gambling,” or does it represent a new future for “content-based payments”?
PUMP.FUN: A MEMECOIN ISSUANCE FACTORY THAT GREW FROM ZERO TO BILLIONS
Since its launch in early 2024, Pump.Fun has been nothing short of spectacular. The platform’s main feature allows anyone to easily create their own memecoin. Users simply fill out a brief form with the token name, description, and image, and within minutes, they can launch a token on the Solana blockchain.
The process is quick, simple, and completely free. To attract more creators, Pump.Fun eliminated the original $2.50 fee for creating tokens in August 2024, and now rewards users with $95 if their tokens reach a certain market milestone.
(Source:defillama)
This low-barrier innovation has fueled Pump.Fun’s rapid growth. In just one year, the platform issued over 5.7 million tokens, making up 71% of Solana’s daily token issuance. As the popularity of memecoins surged, the market value of these tokens also skyrocketed. Some of 2024’s biggest memecoins, like Billy (BILLY) and Michi (MICHI), saw their market caps hit $218 million and $321 million, respectively.
However, this decentralized nature of Pump.Fun turned it into more than just an investment platform—it became a controversial “social experiment.” To attract attention, many users resorted to extreme actions, like streaming themselves sitting on toilets for hours to boost their tokens’ popularity.
In one extreme case, a token creator even set themselves on fire to promote their coin, resulting in serious injury. These shocking actions caught public attention, and eventually led Pump.Fun to shut down its livestream feature.
BEHIND THE MEMECOIN CRAZE: FINANCIAL NIHILISM AMONG YOUNG INVESTORS
Why did Pump.Fun rise so quickly to become the leader in the memecoin space? One key reason is that the platform significantly lowered the barrier to entry. Its core idea was to make it easy for anyone to participate, breaking down the walls between cryptocurrency creators and investors.
As Sarcophagus founder Zach Hamilton put it, “Pump.Fun didn’t invent anything groundbreaking, it simply made it easy for everyone to join.”
At the same time, financial nihilism has taken hold among young investors, driven by global economic uncertainty. Rising inflation and living costs have made traditional financial tools less effective, prompting many to look for higher-risk investment opportunities in hopes of achieving quick financial success.
In this environment, the “get rich quick” appeal of memecoins has been irresistible to many young people seeking to change their financial future.
(Source:Pump.fun)
Cosmo Jiang, a portfolio manager at Pantera Capital, noted, “Even if most of the tokens launched on Pump.Fun eventually lose their value, the chance of a quick profit is simply too tempting for young investors. Betting on memecoins can actually make economic sense because it might offer unexpected social and financial rewards.”
In addition to their investment potential, Pump.Fun tokens also became a form of self-expression. Memecoins are no longer just digital assets—they’re a way for people to identify with certain attitudes or lifestyles.
For example, Chill Guy Memecoin, inspired by the meme “Just a Chill Guy,” attracts those who embrace a laid-back attitude. Buying this token isn’t just an investment; it’s also a way for people to express their personality and values.
MEMECOINS: FINANCIAL GAMBLING OR THE FUTURE OF CONTENT PAYMENTS?
Despite its incredible success, Pump.Fun’s future remains uncertain. Critics argue that the platform is essentially a form of unregulated gambling, where tokens with no real backing could lead to significant losses for investors.
In December 2024, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a warning about Pump.Fun, claiming it might be offering or promoting financial services without proper authorization. As a result, Pump.Fun restricted access to the platform for UK users.
However, Pump.Fun’s founders seem to have a much grander vision. Tweedale, one of the co-founders, said that their long-term goal is to transform Pump.Fun from a simple memecoin launchpad into a mainstream social platform, with most of the revenue flowing directly to users and creators. “Imagine Instagram or TikTok, but where everything is investable, and creators and users get paid directly,” Tweedale explained. “We no longer see these tokens as just memecoins—they’re content.”
This vision has caught the attention of many investors who see the potential for blockchain technology to reshape the social media and content creation economy. As Pump.Fun continues to grow, we may witness the emergence of a platform that evolves from a short-term craze into a sustainable competitor to traditional social media giants.
CONCLUSION
Whether Pump.Fun will continue its explosive growth or fade into a passing craze remains to be seen. Regardless, it has demonstrated the enormous potential of memecoins and shown how blockchain technology can disrupt social platforms and the content creation economy.
In the future, memecoins may not just be investment tools—they could become an integral part of the global social and entertainment economy, offering entirely new business models and social experiences.
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