Trench Diaries 2/8/25

From the Trenches: The Meme Coin Market Has No Memory

The meme market has been infiltrated. Post $TRUMP and the $MELANIA cycle top, the dopamine limit has been thoroughly combusted. Nothing hits the same. $MELANIA sent to $13.73 before crashing back to $1.45, leaving the market dopamine-starved and chasing the next high. Meme coins thrive on attention, not fundamentals, and this last cycle pushed that truth to its limits.

Now, the market is scrambling for a new meta. AI tokens were supposed to kick off a utility cycle on Solana and Base—but when the sitting President drops a meme coin, people start rethinking why they’re holding something just because it has a cool dev and an LLM. The tension is clear: hype-driven plays keep winning, while utility struggles to find its moment.

The truth? Nothing holds value—only attention does. Traders adapt, investors get left behind. When the market is running hot, everyone forgets this. But when the hype fades and liquidity dries up, reality hits: their money isn’t coming back. Now, all that’s left is waiting for the next narrative to make them forget again.