In this episode of Unchained, memecoin traders Ansem and Kelxyz unpack everything about memecoins, discussing what makes them valuable and how they evaluate their investment potential. They also address the criticisms and controversies surrounding them, including racism and sexism. (They have a surprising reaction to the latter.) Ansem and Kel argue that memecoins have substance and value, largely due to their popularity and the attention they receive on the internet.
They also discuss the importance of distribution and virality in the success of a memecoin, how the chain any coin is on affects its value, and give their opinions on Runes vs. BRC-20s vs. Solana and Ethereum.
Plus, they talk about their wildest memecoin stories (think: Dogwifhat) and provide their insights on what they think memecoins will become in the future.
Show highlights:
- Ansem’s and Kel’s investment theses around memecoins
- How Ansem and Kel got into trading memecoins and how they evaluate their potential
- Why the coin distribution matters and whether tokenomics is important with memecoins
- How to discern between memecoins with genuine vs. fake interest
- How memecoins differ across blockchains such as Solana, Ethereum, and Bitcoin
- Ansem and Kel’s responses to the criticisms of memecoins
- Whether and how memecoins could become safer for users
- Kel and Ansem’s surprising reaction to racist and sexist memecoins
- Ansem's story on WIF and how a female friend of his fueled its popularity
- Whether Bitcoin is “the original memecoin" and how they define memecoin
- The future of memecoins and how they believe all memes will become coins
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Guests:
Links
Culture:
- What else could memecoins be? by Vitalik Buterin
- How bad policy favors memes over matter by Chris Dixon
- Cointelegraph: Meme coins: Betrayal of crypto’s ideals… or its true purpose?
- CoinDesk: The Memecoin Grift and How It Threatens Ethereum Culture
Investment:
- CoinGecko: Top Crypto Narratives Gained 39% to 1313% in Q1 2024
- Messari: Navigating Memecoin Mania
- Kelxyz investment strategy
- Decrypt: Crypto Influencer Ansem Explains His Meme Coin Thesis and Why He’s Bullish on Bitcoin Runes
- Unchained: What Is Dogwifhat (WIF) and Why Is It Up so Much?
Safer memecoins
- Unchained: Half of Solana Presale Tokens Rolled Out Between November and February Were Malicious: Blockaid Study
- Cointelegraph: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities
- Andre Conje’s proposal
Racist memecoins
- Unchained: Offensive Memecoins Proliferate on Solana, Sparking Debate
- Crypto.news: Ethereum's Buterin slams Solana's racist meme coins, urges better projects
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