Token2049 panelists discuss meme coins’ role in crypto industry development

Participants of the Token2049 conference examined trends in consumer web3 applications, noting the growing role of meme coins.

During the Emerging Trends in Consumer web3 Apps panel at Token2049 in Dubai, speakers discussed tokenizing user attention and the role of meme coins in this development.

Imran Khan from AllianceDAO noted that a new direction is emerging in the blockchain industry today —attention tokenization, which also applies to the meme coin industry. Many projects launched over the past few years are using memes to increase their audience, with Khan adding that people are incentivized based on a token similar to what they think.

Backpack founder Tristan Yver also expressed that all the attention is now focused on meme coins. With this token type, new user onboarding is happening in the crypto industry.

Investor Santiago Roel Santos agreed, noting that attention tokenization also applies to meme coins, which have taken over the crypto industry in recent months despite having a short half-life. According to him, the crypto industry may underestimate the power of meme coins, calling them “not real”. In reality, meme coins are very “powerful”.

“They’ve been around since humans have walked on Earth, so they’re very important instruments.”

Santiago Roel Santos, investor

However, the panelists disagreed on whether meme coins are vital in consumer web3 applications and attention tokenization. At the same time, the speakers noted their critical role in the cryptocurrency industry.

Meanwhile, meme coins continue to set records. As noted in a CoinGecko report, the tokens significantly outperformed all other sectors of the crypto market in the first quarter of 2024, delivering an average return of 1,313% across the top ten tokens.

Compared to other sectors, such as real-world assets (RWA) and AI-based tokens, meme coins have maintained a dominant lead in profitability and highlighted the dynamic and speculative nature of the current cryptocurrency market landscape.