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Industry sectors such as Layer 2s, which are crucial for scaling blockchain for mainstream use, and the intersection of crypto and artificial intelligence, were expected to lead the way in terms of performance.
Technical frontiers like restaking, modular blockchains, and DePIN projects were also seen as potential contenders.
However, defying expectations, it is the cat-themed coins, dog-themed coins, memes, and fractionalized NFTs that are leading the charge.
Meme Coins Post Substantial Gains
Cat-themed coins, with tokens like Taylor Swift’s Cat, Banana Cat, and Pop Cat, have seen impressive gains, with Taylor Swift’s Cat token surging 25-fold in the past seven days.
Although the cat coin sector may seem dismissible with a market cap of $730 million, the meme category has emerged as a force to be reckoned with.
With a staggering market cap of $55 billion, meme coins have surpassed the liquid staking sector, Layer 2s, and gaming tokens in terms of valuation.
Within the meme category, dog-themed coins dominate, with Doge, the original meme coin, reigning supreme with a market cap exceeding $20 billion.
The sector as a whole has experienced an 84% surge in the past week. Notable performers include SHIB, PEPE, BONK, WIF, FLOKI, and POPCAT, which have more than doubled in value, contributing billions of dollars to their market caps.
Other significant gainers include MYRO and MOG.
Solana Emerges as Preferred Blockchain for Meme Coins
Solana, a blockchain platform known for its low transaction costs, has emerged as a preferred venue for trading meme coins.
The platform has seen a wave of new coins featuring caricatures of public figures like Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
The viral story of a trader turning $260 into nearly half a million dollars with ‘Jeo Boden’ sparked the creation of coins like ‘Doland Tremp’ and ‘Olen Mosk.’
No way they just dumped $BODEN on Biden’s terrible state of the union speech? 😂😭 pic.twitter.com/Eyybd0kxWV
— Bones Senpai 🧞♂️ (@EVNFT) March 8, 2024
Solana-based decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have witnessed trading volumes exceeding $2 billion on March 5, according to DeFiLlama, with Solana’s share of DEX volumes steadily increasing to around 15% from less than 2% six months ago.
Currently, Solana is the third largest blockchain network in terms of DEX volume, trailing behind Ethereum (ETH) and Arbitrum.
Ethereum, which hosts the largest DeFi ecosystem, registered around $4.7 billion in trading volume in the past 24 hours, with a positive weekly change of 54%.
On the other hand, Arbitrum DEXes saw $2.1 billion in daily trading volume, up by 85% over the past week.
The Solana ecosystem now boasts more than 2,500 monthly active developers, according to the Solana Foundation.
The foundation highlighted that the network has maintained a consistent range of 2,500 to 3,000 monthly active developers throughout the past year, a testament to the ecosystem’s ability to attract and retain talent.
The increased developer activity comes as Solana continues to make waves in the crypto community, achieving several significant milestones.
The network has surpassed Ethereum in 7-day stablecoin trading volume for the first time ever.