Coinbase Lists Viral Meme Coin Moo Deng, Fueling 50 Percentage Surge in Market Cap

In a move that highlights the growing influence of viral meme coins, Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, has officially listed the highly popular Moo Deng meme coin, triggering a significant 50% surge in its market cap. The listing marks a major milestone for Moo Deng, a Solana-based token that has taken the crypto world by storm, gaining widespread attention after going viral on TikTok.

Coinbase Expands Crypto Offerings with Moo Deng

Coinbase’s decision to list Moo Deng (MOODENG) is part of a broader expansion of the platform’s cryptocurrency offerings, which have seen a flurry of meme coin additions in recent weeks. Just last month, Coinbase added other well-known meme coins, such as Pepe and Floki, to its trading platform, further diversifying its asset offerings.

The listing of Moo Deng follows a trend that has become increasingly common on cryptocurrency exchanges—particularly those like Coinbase that are seeking to capitalize on the popularity of meme coins, which have captured the attention of retail investors and social media users alike. The announcement of Moo Deng’s listing has caused an immediate spike in its market performance, with DEXScreener data showing a 50% increase in its market cap within just 24 hours of the announcement.

The Rise of Moo Deng: A Viral TikTok Sensation

Moo Deng’s rise to prominence is rooted in its viral success on TikTok, where the token began as a social media sensation around a baby hippo meme. The video quickly went viral, drawing the attention of thousands of crypto enthusiasts and meme lovers across the globe. The meme coin’s rapid popularity prompted Solana developers to swiftly launch the token on the Solana network, allowing it to gain traction among users of the blockchain.

In a little over two months since its creation, Moo Deng has achieved an impressive market capitalization of $555 million, with the token at one point peaking above $700 million before experiencing a slight retracement in its value. Despite this retracement, Moo Deng remains one of the hottest tokens in the meme coin space, continuing to captivate the interest of investors and the broader crypto community.

Pump.fun: The Platform Behind the Meme Coin Phenomenon

Moo Deng, like many other recent meme coins, was created using Pump.fun, a protocol designed to allow anyone to create their own meme coin in minutes. This platform has become a hub for meme coin creation, giving rise to a wave of new tokens that have flooded the market in recent months.

The simplicity and accessibility of Pump.fun have contributed to its immense popularity, and the platform has raised over $100 million in revenue within just six months of its existence.

Despite the massive success of Pump.fun, the platform has also faced its fair share of criticism. High-profile figures within the crypto space, including Binance founder Changpeng Zhao and Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin, have expressed skepticism regarding meme coins, arguing that they divert attention away from the true utility of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. Critics have often pointed out that the speculative nature of meme coins detracts from the development of projects with more substantial long-term use cases.

Controversy and Backlash: Meme Coins and the Public Eye

The rise of platforms like Pump.fun has not been without controversy. In response to complaints from the community about the platform’s marketing tactics, Pump.fun recently deactivated its live-streaming feature. The feature had been used by meme creators to push their coins aggressively, sometimes employing questionable tactics to attract attention.

However, the move to disable the feature has not slowed the growth of the platform. In fact, Pump.fun continued to generate record-breaking revenue, reaching an impressive $82.8 million in monthly revenue in November 2024, despite the ongoing backlash.

This influx of meme coins, especially those created through Pump.fun, raises important questions about the future of the meme coin market. While some view these coins as a fleeting trend, others see them as a way to introduce new investors to the cryptocurrency space, even if the long-term value of these tokens remains uncertain.

What’s Next for Moo Deng and Other Meme Coins?

As Moo Deng continues to enjoy the spotlight on platforms like Coinbase, its market behavior will be closely watched by both investors and critics alike. The meme coin’s future will depend on how well it can maintain its popularity and whether its community continues to grow. With meme coins often characterized by their extreme volatility, Moo Deng’s performance in the coming months could provide valuable insights into the sustainability of meme-driven tokens in the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Despite the skepticism surrounding meme coins, their growing influence on platforms like Coinbase shows that these tokens are here to stay—for now. With the rise of Moo Deng, Pepe, Floki, and others, it is clear that the cryptocurrency space is continuing to evolve, and meme coins are becoming an increasingly important part of that evolution.

As Coinbase continues to list meme coins, the industry will likely see further integration of viral social media phenomena into the crypto market. Whether these meme coins will prove to be a passing trend or establish themselves as lasting players in the space remains to be seen. However, one thing is certain: the rise of Moo Deng represents the growing intersection of memes, social media, and cryptocurrency, and it is an area that is likely to continue making waves in the industry.