Meme coins take a hit in market downturn, but PolitiFi tokens and charity initiatives show resilience amid pre-election buzz
TL;DR
- PolitiFi meme coins gained popularity as U.S. election debates stirred interest, with tokens like Trog the Trump Frog rising 30%.
- Meme coin market fell from $52B to $43.4B after geopolitical tensions escalated in the Middle East.
- Meme coins' 7-day performance trailed only PolitiFi narratives, up 10% as the sector maintained interest despite wider crypto losses.
- Bonk’s Nom sets a world record while raising funds for animal adoption
- Osaka Protocol wins hearts and minds with a unique community-led approach.
After starting October with a mad frenzy, meme coin prices dropped across the board as the geopolitical tensions ramped up this week. But weren’t we here like a few months ago? This is starting to feel like Final Destination 6. Oh wait, that’s actually coming out next year. If we’re still here.
Anyways, meme coins. Here we go!
The Big Stories
PolitiFi Memes Go for Re-election
Ah, politics. The dirtiest game there is, and now thanks to meme coins, a little more fun for those of us not lucky enough to have Nancy Pelosi’s near-prescient investment acumen.
We’re one week closer to the US elections, and this week’s debate between vice-presidential candidates JD Vance and Tim Walz presumably sparked another surge in political meme tokens, with millions and millions and millions in gains going to Trump-themed and MAGA-spawned coins such as Trog the Trump Frog (TROG), up 30% this week.
It goes without saying that you should really think twice before putting your life savings into cryptocurrencies.
Think people, think!
But yes, political memes are going to be a crazy rollercoaster ride until the next POTUS is in the Oval Office. Get used to it.
Bonk! Let the Dogs Out for Charity
It’s great to see the meme community giving back.
Shoutout to Bonk core contributor and meme legend @TheOnlyNom who broke the Guinness World Record for Most dogs walked at once with a crazy 38, raising awareness for the adoption of our furry friends!
You can get more information on how to adopt them here and how you can donate to global animal causes: https://bonkforpaws.com
Quick question: How much have cats and dogs helped your crypto portfolio this year?
Meme Coin Market
7-Day Market Snapshot
For the 7 days ending October 3, 2024, the total meme coin market cap weighs in at $43.40 billion, after going as high as $52B before the issues escalated in the Middle East.
The 30-day chart reveals that the market cap has risen from lows around $35-36 billion in early September to its current level, so you’re still up if you invested more than a month ago.
Meme Coins vs Other Crypto Sectors
Based on DeFiLlama's Narrative tracker’s latest 7-day market cap-weighted performance chart, Political Finance (PoliFi) is their Force One with a 20% gain. As I explained above, this is no surprise as the US presidential elections are now only a month away.
Meme coins come in second though, with a gain of around 10%, showing that the sector has considerable mind share among crypto holders. Meanwhile, most other categories are in the red, some losing as much as 15%. Interestingly, Prediction Markets, which have been touted by everyone (almost) except Nancy Pelosi to replace meme coins as the chief crypto gambling tool for 2024, slips to number 5 this week.
Top 20 Meme Coins
Despite this resurgence as a popular crypto narrative and a big start to “Uptober” for Solana memes in particular, meme coins as usual bore one of crypto’s biggest brunt this month:
Top Gainers (7day):
- Oops… politics did it again… in the top 20 only Osaka Protocol (OSAK) is up: a measly +2.78%
Top Losers:
- SUNDOG: -30.53%
- cat in a dogs world (MEW): -27.13%
- BOOK OF MEME (BOME): -20.50%
- Memecoin (MEME): -21.34%
- DOGS: -21.69%
Insights
- Osaka Protocol is the only coin showing positive performance this week.
- The meme coin market is experiencing a broad downturn, with significant losses across most tokens.
- Even major players like Dogecoin (-10.62%) and Shiba Inu (-14.12%) are also down.
- Mid-cap meme coins like Pepe (-8.98%) and dogwifhat (-7.85%) show smaller but still substantial losses.
- The magnitude of losses varies widely, from -2.19% (Bonk) to -30.53% (SUNDOG).
Memes on TON, Solana, Tron and Base
Let’s see how the top 5 meme coins on the Ton, Tron, Solana and Base chains did last week. Look away now if you don’t like blood:
Summary:
- TON meme coins have experienced significant drops, with all top five tokens seeing losses of over 20%.
- Tron meme coins show mixed performance, with Tron Bull (BULL) gaining 16.38%, while others like TBULL and SUNCAT posted substantial losses.
- Solana meme coins, particularly Gigachad (GIGA), saw notable gains, but most other tokens saw declines.
- Base meme coins had a standout performer in Degen (DEGEN), which surged by 47.55%, while Brett (BRETT) and Mister Miggles (MIGGLES. and yes, that’s mister to you) saw significant losses of over 20%.
Meme Coin of the Week: Osaka Protocol
Disclaimer: The following is not an endorsement of the cryptocurrency discussed, or financial advice of any kind. It does not reflect the opinions of CoinMarketCap. It is all based on the analysis done above. It does not guarantee any future success of this cryptocurrency. Please DYOR.
Osaka Protocol, founded by the elusive Mephisto, is a community-driven project inspired by Shiba Inu's decentralized model. It started by airdropping 30% of the total supply to all people who sold SHIB before its price mooned! Osaka Protocol’s cute meme design takes its inspiration from the city’s famous Glico running man landmark.
Every member is considered a "dev," sharing responsibility for the project’s success. With a 7-chain bridge supporting Ethereum, Avalanche, BNB Smart Chain, and more, Osaka has grown rapidly, amassing tens of thousands of holders.
Its market cap recently surpassed a fully diluted value of $350m, and the protocol fosters global communities in Poland, Brazil, Indonesia, Turkey, and more.
What You Can Do Now
- Monitor PolitiFi memes ahead of U.S. elections for potential price spikes in politically themed coins.
- Explore charity-driven meme projects like Bonk for more socially conscious investments.
- Diversify holdings to reduce exposure to meme coin volatility during geopolitical events.
This article contains links to third-party websites or other content for information purposes only (“Third-Party Sites”). The Third-Party Sites are not under the control of CoinMarketCap, and CoinMarketCap is not responsible for the content of any Third-Party Site, including without limitation any link contained in a Third-Party Site, or any changes or updates to a Third-Party Site. CoinMarketCap is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement, approval or recommendation by CoinMarketCap of the site or any association with its operators. This article is intended to be used and must be used for informational purposes only. It is important to do your own research and analysis before making any material decisions related to any of the products or services described. This article is not intended as, and shall not be construed as, financial advice. The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s [company’s] own and do not necessarily reflect those of CoinMarketCap. CoinMarketCap is not responsible for the success or authenticity of any project, we aim to act as a neutral informational resource for end-users.
