Author: Fairy, ChainCatcher

Editor: TB, ChainCatcher

Do not forget why you set out just because you have gone too far.

In the clamor of market frenzy, meme coins are rampant, short-term speculation is prevalent, and FOMO emotions push up bubbles, while the Builders truly driving the industry forward are struggling in the cracks. Capital chases profits, founders exit, and even the most dedicated developers begin to waver.

When innovation is hijacked by traffic and speculation, and the market becomes a game of "pass the parcel", do we still remember the original faith of this industry?

Dissolution of Long-termism Narrative: From "Changing the World" to "Speculative Casino"

Looking back at the early days of the crypto industry, long-termism was once the core driving force of innovation. In 2017, foundational projects like Ethereum, Polkadot, and Cosmos were born. At that time, numerous Layer1 and DeFi projects were seen as pieces of the next-generation financial infrastructure, and the 2021 bull market pushed this narrative to its peak: the DeFi Summer wave, the NFT explosion, let projects like Uniswap, Aave, and Solana emerge.

However, today's crypto market has changed dramatically. The pace of innovation has slowed, and the industry's focus has gradually shifted from infrastructure construction to short-term profit-driven domains. IOSG Ventures founder Jocy directly states: "If the end result is talent drain and turning Web3 into a speculative casino, is their success truly shining?"

This change is already evident among entrepreneurs. Crypto KOL Jason Chen points out that high-quality entrepreneurs in the crypto field are leaving at scale, in stark contrast to the prosperity of 2021. AI from infrastructure to application layers can accommodate talent and funds far beyond the crypto space, and well-paid entrepreneurs have no motivation to continue building this "big casino". "Compared to these emerging industries, blockchain seems to have become the most boring one."

More worryingly, this short-term speculative mentality is eroding the industry's long-term development momentum and affecting the entire industry's positive feedback mechanism. Jocy points out, "After getting used to quick money, who would still be willing to polish products and drive growth? If the entire industry tilts towards speculation, the crypto market will ultimately only self-consume and lose its true innovation drive."

The crypto industry once carried the dream of transforming the financial system, but now faces the risk of being swallowed by speculative waves. The current market is more democratized and fragmented, yet has lost its sense of direction.

PVP Wave Dominates Market: "Speed Run" and "Rug Pull" Become Normalized

According to CoinGecko data, meme coins occupied 31% of market attention last year, with total market cap surging from $2 billion in 2023 to $14 billion, an increase of 600%. But beneath the bubble, the bubble remains.

CoinWire statistics show that 76% of KOLs have promoted "dead" meme coins, with 2/3 already zeroed out, and 86% of meme coins plummeting 90% within 3 months. The mode of "quick launch, rapid pump, short-term cash-out" seems to have become the standard growth path for meme coins.

The cycle from project birth to explosion and rapid recession has been drastically compressed. Stories of hundred-fold gains continuously stimulate investors' FOMO emotions, attracting massive capital inflows. However, as heat fades, "rug pull" becomes the final destination for most meme coins.

We reviewed some meme coins that were glorious in 2024, tallying their historical peaks and current status, and the result was as expected - they all ultimately ended in "rug pull".

Moreover, Pump.fun, considered the wealth-making machine for Solana ecosystem meme coins, saw weekly revenue spike to $27.92 million but has now drastically reduced to $8 million. Weekly trading volume plummeted from $2.2 billion to $536 million. More notably, Pump.fun platform has had days where only 1 token breaks $1 million market cap in 24 hours, even experiencing "zero trading volume" phenomena.

Meanwhile, capital and attention are turning to BNB Chain and TRON. Every rise might bring a brief carnival; every fall might leave "a mess". In a market where "speed run" and "rug pull" have become normalized, how long can this wind blow?

Image source: defillama

Traffic Competition among Top Exchanges

As the crypto industry falls into "casino" mode, competition between exchanges seems to be about who can list meme coins faster and more accurately. As the industry's "locomotive", Binance has also "gone with the flow" in this traffic chase.

According to ChainCatcher statistics, in 2024 so far, Binance has listed 36 meme coins in futures and spot markets, occupying a significant proportion of its listing portfolio.

Recently, Binance founder CZ and He Yi have personally entered the arena, being active in communities and X (Twitter), meming, posting images, responding to memes, creating MEME marketing materials to grab traffic dividends. On this, IOSG Ventures founder Jocy speaks frankly: "The most prestigious individuals and organizations in the industry are focusing on meme, honestly, what good does winning this battle do?"

Currently, most meme coins lack substantial empowerment, more like a "pass the parcel" game. They have no self-generating ability and lack sustainable value support, only maintaining short-term heat through social media hype and celebrity effects - a model difficult to sustain.

Once, a project's technical strength, ecosystem construction, and innovation capabilities were market focus. Now, short-term gains and social media heat have become key to success. The voice of long-termism is gradually drowned in speculative waves, and the crypto market's development trajectory is deviating from its original intention, becoming increasingly short-sighted and impetuous.

Do You Remember the Original Intention of Crypto?

With speculative emotions high, the survival space for true value investors and quality projects is increasingly shrinking. Crypto KOL Rick Awsb points out that the meme trend has intensified the "bad money drives out good" phenomenon, with PVP making genuine value investors fewer, and the industry's short-term "desertification" has become an undisputed fact.

Developers focusing on technological innovation and ecosystem construction are gradually marginalized, with technology and innovation's brilliance obscured by market noise. Bifrost builder Lurpis directly states: "In the Web3 domain, creating an excellent product is far less effective than pumping."

Despite this, developers, investors, and builders still believe in Web3's long-term value. Although their voices seem weak amidst market noise, these adherents maintain the industry's forward momentum during turbulence. As crypto KOL Blue Fox says: "The industry is like a journey, with all being passersby. It's indeed difficult now, but a small part is still persevering. Even if it's a small part, they will survive this winter."

Though the winter is cold, the steps of spring have never stopped.