Perhaps one of the most unique things about the cryptocurrency community when compared to other finance and investing communities, is their love for tongue in cheek humor.
Crypto enthusiasts have taken ‘memes’ to a whole new level, however. Rather than simply sharing funny pictures on the internet with each other, some have even gone on to invent their own digital currencies.
For the outsider looking in, these ‘meme’ cryptocurrencies might seem like a weird curiosity, but in a great twist of double irony, these meme currencies aren’t just one big useless in-joke. They actually have real-world value! Just as you can closely follow the ebb and flow of the Luna crypto price and other more ‘serious’ digital currencies, you can follow the meme coin market.
Before we take a look at what the best meme cryptocurrencies to invest in are, however, we should first set out what exactly a meme coin is.
What are meme cryptocurrencies?
With the launch of Dogecoin in December 2013, a whole new category of cryptocurrencies was spawned: the meme coin.
Meme coins are cryptocurrencies that are associated with an internet joke or popular culture reference — a ‘meme’ — that has been transformed into a digital currency. Although Dogecoin was the first meme coin, it was by no means the last. Since its launch, we have seen an explosion of meme coins.
Despite being based on jokes, these meme coins have surged in popularity and are traded on numerous mainstream cryptocurrency exchanges. This has helped to legitimize them. In a great twist of irony, being known as a meme coin has actually helped to turn them into legitimate digital currencies that are used in real transactions!
As a result, meme coins are now used in a wide variety of transactions online. Some newer cryptocurrencies have even combined elements of meme coins with other aspects such as NFTs, the Metaverse and play-2-earn gaming.
This has led to them occasionally outperforming other high-profile non-meme coins such as Luna!
Of the many meme coins that have burst onto the scene in recent years, however, which are the most important and what should you look out for?
Dogecoin — the original meme crypto?
Originally launched in 2013, Dogecoin is the first meme crypto. This makes it only a few years younger than Bitcoin, and older than Ethereum which launched in 2015!
Dogecoin was initially conceived of as a joke and referenced the Shiba Inu dog meme that was popular at the time. It was envisioned as a joke to make fun of the wild speculation going on in the cryptocurrency world at the time, although ironically it has since been subject to considerable price speculation itself!
Dogecoin frequently makes headlines in the crypto world, especially since billionaire and crypto skeptic Elon Musk started posting regularly about the coin and amassed considerable holdings in it. As a result, whenever Musk gets mentioned in the news, this tends to impact the price of Dogecoin!
Shiba Inu — the second biggest meme coin?
Shiba Inu — or SHIB for short — is the second largest meme cryptocurrency by total market capitalization and floats in and around the top 20 cryptos at any one time.
It was originally launched as a joke token and, as you can tell by the name, references the same dog breed that Dogecoin played off!
As Shiba Inu has evolved, it has moved on from being a pure meme. Through various development cycles, it has added a surprising amount of utility.
Its developers envisioned it as an Ethereum-based alternative to Dogecoin and it is far more abundant in its total circulation. It has also spawned various projects, including an NFT art incubator and a decentralized exchange called Shibaswap.
Although the relatively high number of coins in circulation tends to keep the price suppressed — particularly when compared to the Luna price for example — it supports a surprisingly high transaction volume.
Dogelon Mars
Given his proximity to the meme coin movement, it was perhaps only a matter of time before the uncrowned ‘King of Doge’ Elon Musk had a coin named after him.
Dogelon Mars is a dog-themed meme coin which runs on Ethereum and Polygon. Thematically, it references both Dogecoin and Elon Musk, and alludes both to Musk’s stated desire to go the moon and the crypto phrase ‘to the moon’.
Beyond having a multi-layered meme built into it, Dogelon Mars has built quite the following and is one of the biggest meme coins by total market capitalization. It has a strong development community behind it and supports a surprisingly high transaction volume.
