Benzinga - by Khyathi Dalal, Benzinga Staff Writer.
VanEck’s meme coin index made a splash in the crypto community, prompting traders to point to the growing mainstream adoption of meme coins.
What Happened: Market Vector announced the launch of its MarketVector Meme Coin Index with the symbol MEMECOIN, covering the six largest meme coins.
It is compiled of Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE), Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) and Pepe (CRYPTO: PEPE) with 30.8%, 28.3% and 14.5%, respectively. Dogwifhat, (CRYPTO: WIF), Floki Inu (CRYPTO: FLOKI) and Bonk (CRYPTO: BONK) make up the remaining three index components with 12.5%, 7.1%, and 6.7%, respectively. The component weightings are capped at 30%.
The index's single-day change is down 2.7% but up 186% year-over-year. The market capitalization of the index stands at $44.7 billion. Although the index’s launch date is April 22, 2024, its next review date is cited as May 27, 2024.
The index's performance since inception (Oct 31, 2021) is -23.3%, but its year-to-date performance is +138%.
Also Read: Only Dogecoin And Shiba Inu Have Crossed The $10B Meme Coin Mark: ‘Who Will Be The Third?,’ Muses Crypto Whale
Why It Matters: Pseudonymous trader apatheticwhale tweeted that the "emergence of the Vaneck Meme Coin index means that this is literally just the beginning."
Another trader stated that with the launch of the index "we are going much higher." Heavily followed trader Plazma noted that although Pepe is only one-sixth of Dogecoin's market capitalization, its weight in the index is half of that of Dogecoin.
Cold Blooded Shiller sees the meme coin index as a way to “outperform 99% of people.”
I swear if your portfolio was constructed simply of these assets, in spot, and you left it alone.No impulsive trades. No gambling. No more "just another $5k deposit to hit some leverage trades."
You'd outperform 99% of people throughout the rest of the year. https://t.co/HONzOfEDoF
— Cold Blooded Shiller (@ColdBloodShill) May 9, 2024
Pepe and Dogwifhat are the newest entrants to the $2 billion valuation club, launched in April 2023 and December 2023, respectively. While Floki and Bonk are also very close to the $2 billion mark, both tokens mimic the meme coin leader Shiba Inu in burning tokens and increasing demand.
Another trader tweeted that "We may be in a bull market, but the bull run hasn't begun yet. The god candles are upon us, and the memes will run." He sees meme coins "exploding" after a bottom for altcoins in summer.
What’s Next: The influence of Bitcoin as an institutional asset class is expected to be thoroughly explored at Benzinga’s upcoming Future of Digital Assets event on Nov. 19. To know how meme coins have evolved in the past few years, this could be a relevant read.
Read Next: Dogecoin, Shiba Inu And Who Else? How Meme Coins Have Evolved Since The Last Bitcoin Halving
Image: Shutterstock
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