The emergence of a new class of meme coins, known as “culture coins”, focused on cultural values such as politics, lifestyle, and religion, has been observed as potentially more profitable than traditional meme tokens like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu. Andrew Kang, co-founder of Mechanism Capital, believes that meme coins centered around deeper cultural themes could offer greater profit potential due to their strong values and identities of their communities. Examples like Jeo Boden (BODEN) and Donald Trump (TREMP), Solana-based meme coins reflecting anti-woke, anti-Biden, and right-wing views, have seen significant growth, with BODEN experiencing gains exceeding 700,000% since its launch.
Kang has strategically invested in culture coins that appeal to real-world communities, considering factors like strong teams, token communities, and compelling marketing campaigns. Beyond political ideologies, meme coins inspired by successful consumer brands like ZYN and MOUTAI have the potential to leverage the associated lifestyle of those brands for added virality. For example, $MOUTAI, which symbolizes wealth and success in Chinese culture, represents a massive opportunity as the potential “meme coin of China and Asia,” while $ZYN caters to a demographic of “bro” culture, including athletes and finance professionals, who may have disposable income for investment.
The debate over meme coins has intensified as the sector emerges as the most profitable narrative in the cryptocurrency industry. While some, like BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, see meme coins as a positive force for blockchain networks, others criticize them as speculative and potentially harmful to the industry’s founding principles. According to a recent report by CoinGecko, meme coins have recorded the highest returns of 1,312.6% on average across the top tokens by market capitalization. Meme coins launched in March, including Book of Meme (BOME), Brett, and Cat in a Dogs World (MEW), have made significant gains.
Some notable meme coins like BRETT and Dogwifhat (WIF) have seen substantial growth, with BRETT recording the highest returns of 7,727.6% by the end of Q1 2024. The total market cap of the memecoin sector currently stands at $64.8 billion, accounting for approximately 2.32% of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization. This marks a 176.9% increase quarter-on-quarter, indicating the growing popularity and profitability of meme coins in the cryptocurrency market. Despite the criticisms, meme coins continue to attract interest and investment as investors seek out opportunities within this rapidly growing sector.
