The U.S. election has brought attention to bitcoin and the Polymarket betting platform, but it has also sparked a frenzy in the memecoin market. In the last 24 hours, thousands of election-themed tokens have been created on the Ethereum and Solana blockchains.
According to Dextools, over 40 tokens related to Donald Trump were minted on Ethereum between 06:00 and 14:30 UTC. On Solana, more than 100 tokens were created between 13:30 and 14:40. The total number of election-themed tokens on Solana has now exceeded 1,000.
It is important to be cautious when dealing with memecoins, as they are known for their extreme volatility and susceptibility to scams. While some well-known election-related memecoins like MAGA and KAMA have gained popularity, many new tokens created in the wake of current events are likely to be rug pulls or scams.
MAGA, a Donald Trump-themed memecoin launched in August 2023, has seen a 27% increase in trading volume in the last 24 hours, pushing its market cap above $150 million. On the other hand, KAMA, a token inspired by Kamala Harris, experienced a 150% surge on November 1st but has since dropped by 50% to an $11 million market cap.
The trend of creating memecoins tied to real-world events is not new. Memecoin creators often try to capitalize on trending topics to create viral tokens, hoping to make a quick profit. However, these ventures can often end in disappointment, as seen with last year’s Bitcoin Pizza Day anniversary when several projects turned out to be rug pulls, resulting in losses for investors.
One recent example is World Liberty Financial, a DeFi project endorsed by Trump’s family. Despite raising $14.75 million in a token sale, the project has struggled to attract investors, with only a small fraction of the total token supply being purchased. The initial target of $300 million remains far from reach.
As the U.S. election continues to dominate headlines, the memecoin market is experiencing a surge in activity. While some tokens may see short-term gains, investors should exercise caution and conduct thorough research before jumping into the volatile world of memecoins.