meme coin

noun

plural meme coins

: an altcoin that is created typically as a humorous tribute to something (such as an Internet meme) or someone (such as a celebrity) and that typically has no real utility

There is one category of crypto tokens meant purely for speculation: Meme coins. These tokens have no functional purpose and no intrinsic value aside from the fun of trading. They are based on "meme" characteristics, like a symbol or story that drives their prices.

—Thomas L. Hogan

Meme coins are meant to be short-term investments that move based purely on hype and speculation. … That being said, there might be one reason to invest in meme coins: portfolio diversification.

—Dominic Basulto

Many speculators in the crypto world have now shifted their focus to meme coins like Dogecoin, dogwifhat, Bonk and Mog Coin—essentially online jokes turned into a currency. In June, the Australian rapper Iggy Azalea released her own meme coin called Mother. In August, the former N.B.A. player Scottie Pippen introduced the cryptocurrency $BALL on the Ethereum blockchain.

—Steven Kurutz

The Melania Trump meme coin, a type of cryptocurrency, hit the market Sunday night about 6 p.m. on the eve of Trump's inauguration. The returning first lady announced the offering's arrival in a post on X, the social media network formerly known as Twitter, saying "You can buy $MELANIA now."

—USA Today (online)

Word History

First Known Use

2014, in the meaning defined above