Trading volume on Pump.fun, a Solana-based token launchpad, plunged by 63% in February as investor confidence took a hit following a series of high-profile memecoin scams. According to data from Dune Analytics, Pump.fun’s trading volume fell from $119 billion in January to $44 billion in February—the lowest level since October 2024.
Declining Token Launches and Market Activity
Alongside the drop in trading volume, the number of new token launches on the platform has significantly decreased. At the beginning of February, Pump.fun saw 58,000 daily token launches, but by March 4, that number had fallen to 24,000. Additionally, the platform’s token graduation rate, which tracks the number of tokens reaching the $100,000 market valuation required for listing on Raydium, has dropped from 1.85% to 0.83% per week.
Despite the downturn, Pump.fun generated $74 million in revenue over the past 30 days, bringing its total fees collected to $580 million, with over 8.2 million tokens launched to date.
Impact of Memecoin Scandals
Several major memecoin-related scandals have contributed to the loss of confidence in the market. Among them, the LIBRA memecoin incident in mid-February became a significant turning point. Argentine President Javier Milei’s endorsement of LIBRA initially caused a price surge, but a sudden crash wiped out over $120 million, leading to accusations of a rug pull. Other controversies surrounding TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins further fueled skepticism, accelerating the market downturn.
Pump.fun’s Response and Future Plans
In response to the declining activity, Pump.fun is working on new features to attract developers and traders. The platform recently launched a mobile app and has teased the development of a native automated market maker (AMM). AMMs facilitate decentralized trading using liquidity pools instead of traditional order books, which could enhance token liquidity and improve the trading experience on Pump.fun.
Solana DEXs Maintain Strength
Despite the challenges facing Pump.fun, Solana’s decentralized exchange (DEX) ecosystem remains strong. Data from DeFiLlama shows that Solana has led DEX trading volume for the fifth consecutive month, surpassing Ethereum by 24% to reach $109 billion. Platforms like Raydium, Meteora, and Orca continue to provide liquidity, supporting Solana’s DeFi ecosystem even as memecoin-related volatility persists.
As Pump.fun works to rebuild trust and improve its platform, the success of its upcoming initiatives will determine whether it can regain momentum in the competitive token launch space.
