Is the memecoin season ending? Binance founder CZ urges utility focus

From 2023 to 2024, the memecoin season marked a period of higher market interest in these primarily speculative assets. This, however, could be ending now that market participants are gradually shifting their focus to utility projects using blockchain.

In particular, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) posted on X this Tuesday, urging people to “build real applications using blockchain.” According to his post, CZ is “not against memes” but acknowledges that “meme coins are getting ‘a little’ weird now.”

The post has received nearly 10,000 comments and over 34,000 likes by writing time, with experts mostly agreeing. Income Shark, for example, claimed, “They went from being fun, then being funny, to being extremely weird and desperate.”

For the critics, Binance’s founder said he is “not trying to end anything,” as people can choose what to invest or hold, but he wants to encourage more builders, urging the industry to focus on utility.

https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1861306581758976434

Memecoins getting weird

Notably, concerns around the topic surged among crypto enthusiasts as things on pump.fun started to “get out of control.” After Gen Z Quant’s kid controversial rug pull’s live stream, other memecoin creators appeared with extreme propositions. 

From masked guys self-locked in jail to girls stripping in exchange for their meme’s price action, one creator even threatened to shoot his dog live if his memecoin did not “pump” to a desired target while another allegedly ate his own feces for the market’s attention.

https://twitter.com/DBCrypt0/status/1860881579217932525

Utility altcoins back on investors’ radar

In this context, so-called utility altcoins—cryptocurrencies linked to projects with real applications using blockchain technology—are back on investors’ radar after nearly three years of a bear market.

As Finbold reported, XRP, Cardano (ADA), Algorand (ALGO), Hedera (HBAR), and a few other names have already benefited from it. Other opportunities are already surging for investors who missed the XRP and ADA price rally, all focusing on utility.

https://twitter.com/vinibarbosabr/status/1858082343824863513

According to Alex Becker, utility altcoins are the “easiest and safest play in crypto,” with a huge growth potential.

“People don’t understand the utility play. It’s not sexy but its the easiest & surest 10-30x in crypto,” Becker said. “This is almost certain. The tech (and games) in these spaces are just getting too damn good and essential.”

Romania, for example, innovated by using blockchain technology in its presidential elections this weekend. Moreover, startups are building on decentralized infrastructures, while blockchain games have made it to the mainstream with “Off the Grid.”

With a change in the crypto market’s narrative, focused on solving real-world problems with innovative tools, utility altcoins could shine. If this happens, the appeal to primarily speculative assets like memecoins could soon end, ending the “weird” season.

Featured image from Shutterstock.