What is a meme coin? Dogecoin to the moon!

Adrian Stencel ()
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Adrian Stencel: UJ - Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie = Jagiellonian University = Université Jagellon de Cracovie

Working Papers from HAL

Abstract: The rise of cryptocurrencies has shaped the current economic landscape, while also raising many conceptual issues. The present paper will aim at an approach to one problem that has not been studied to date. One widely known fact about cryptocurrencies is the existence of meme coins, such as Dogecoin (DOGE) or Shiba Inu (SHIB), which are very popular as assets for retail investors; accordingly, their dynamics have been studied to some extent by economists. However, to date no one has attempted to focus on a basic conceptual question upon which, to a certain degree, all of these studies depend: what is a meme coin? The present paper addresses this question. Through the analysis of paradigmatic examples, I argue that meme coins should be defined as a cryptocurrency characterised by three properties: i) community before utility, ii) inverse crowdfunding, and iii) zeronomics. I then argue that these properties are not present in every meme coin; moreover, they may appear as well to some extent in cryptocurrencies not labelled as meme coins. Therefore, I argue that we should rely on two concepts, that of the meme coin and that of meme coinness, with the latter representing the extent to which a given cryptocurrency resembles a paradigmatic meme coin. The paper concludes with an outline of potential debates in which the concept of the meme coin could be implemented.

Keywords: nakamoto memeconomy ryoshi blockchain cryptocurrencies; nakamoto; memeconomy; ryoshi; blockchain; cryptocurrencies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023-12-21
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-04360574v1
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