Memecoins and launchpads

Solana became the home of memecoins – tokens with no use at all, whose price rests only on attention. The reason is simple: creating a token is cheap and trading is fast. Since 2024 so-called launchpads have made it even easier: you create a token in a few clicks. The result: tens of thousands of new "opportunities" every day.

How a launchpad works#

The best-known launchpad, pump.fun (mentioned as an example), launched a simple model in January 2024:

1. Anyone creates a token for a fraction of a SOL – a name, a picture, done.
2. At first the token trades on a so-called bonding curve: the more people buy, the higher the price, according to a preset formula.
3. When the market value reaches a set threshold, the token "graduates" – it moves into a liquidity pool on a decentralised exchange and keeps trading there.

How many tokens survive#

According to public analyses of blockchain data, only about 1% of tokens – often fewer – "graduate". In April 2026 more than 760,000 were created on a single launchpad, and roughly one in 120 made it further. And even graduating is no win – most of the successful tokens then lose most of their value within days and weeks.

Who makes money#

• Creators and insiders – buy at the start at the lowest price, often through several wallets, and sell to those who come after them.
• Bots – buy in the first second after creation and sell at the first rise.
• Platforms – take a fee on every trade, whether the price rises or falls.
• Buyers who arrive late are the ones who pay for all of it.

Famous names are no protection either. The TRUMP token, launched in January 2025, helped push SOL to a record 295.83 USD on 19 January – and itself lost more than 80% of its value within a few months. The LIBRA token, promoted by Argentina's president in February 2025, fell more than 80% within hours.

What a scam looks like#

A so-called rug pull means the creator "pulls the rug" and leaves buyers with worthless tokens. The most common forms:

• the creator sells all their tokens at once,
• removes the liquidity from the pool, so there is nobody left to sell to,
• mints new tokens using the mint authority,
• freezes buyers' accounts, so nobody but the creator can sell.

Common myths#

• "Whoever buys early wins." Creators and bots are earlier than you. You are almost always "later".
• "The token graduated, so it is safe." Graduating only means it moved to an exchange.
• "A famous name is behind the token, it cannot fall." TRUMP and LIBRA showed the opposite.