Pump.fun High Valuation Triggers Industry Reflection

Recently, the sky-high valuation of a MEME launch platform has sparked widespread discussion within the industry. The platform plans to issue tokens at a valuation of 40 billion dollars, raising 1 billion dollars in funding. This figure is astonishing as it surpasses the valuations of most DeFi blue-chip protocols. In response, industry insiders have offered several points of view:

Irrational Valuation Caused by Market Bubbles

Data shows that this platform is indeed one of the biggest beneficiaries of the current MEME craze, with monthly revenue peaking at tens of millions of dollars. However, its business model mainly relies on the market's short-term irrational enthusiasm for MEME coins, which is essentially a "gambling" driven traffic monetization. Whether this model can continue to exist is in question.

A valuation of 40 billion USD far exceeds that of most DeFi blue-chip projects, making it hard to understand why a project jokingly referred to as a "scalping platform" can attain such a high valuation. Once the MEME craze subsides, or the market returns to rationality, the platform's revenue model could collapse rapidly. At a time when the MEME craze has already begun to cool down, the intention of the platform to issue tokens now is puzzling.

Fragile business models make it difficult to build a moat

The success of this platform is not accidental; it has seized the technological dividends of high performance and low cost from a certain public chain, as well as the opportunity of MEME culture moving from niche to mainstream. However, whether this "first-mover advantage" can build a strong moat is questionable. Technically, similar token issuance platforms can be quickly replicated; operationally, the MEME launch platform is essentially a traffic business, and the cost for users to migrate is extremely low.

More importantly, the platform is highly dependent on specific public chain ecosystems. Once there is a significant change in this ecosystem, the vulnerability of its business model will be fully exposed. This business model, which is built on the infrastructure of others, is essentially a "dependent business" and is difficult to support an independent valuation of 40 billion dollars.

Tooling attributes are difficult to build a complete ecosystem

At present, the platform is primarily a "issuance tool". To support a market valuation of $40 billion, it needs to build a large MEME economic ecosystem. However, there is an inherent contradiction in transitioning from a pure tool platform to a complex MEME economic ecosystem: the core of MEME culture lies in simplicity, directness, and viral transmission, and excessive functional layering may cause the platform to lose its original "wildness".

In fact, the "short and quick" characteristic of MEME makes it difficult to strike a balance with the long-term value accumulation of the platform. Products that attempt to evolve from tools to platforms often lose themselves in the pursuit of being "large and comprehensive," ultimately becoming something that is hard to define. After receiving $1 billion in financing, the platform may also face such risks.

Overvaluation or Disruptive Innovation System in the Industry

The platform's extremely high valuation sends a dangerous signal to the entire industry: in the current crypto ecosystem, the value of "traffic aggregation + speculative monetization" may surpass that of "technological innovation + infrastructure development." If speculating on gambling platforms is more profitable than promoting technological innovation, who would still invest in infrastructure development? This new value orientation could trigger disastrous industry ripple effects.

On one hand, more capital and talent may flow into MEME-related infrastructure construction; on the other hand, this may exacerbate the industry's "entertainment" trend, marginalizing true technological innovation.

Overall, this financing event may either signify the maturation of the MEME economy or serve as a signal of a decline in industry values. The key lies in whether the platform can truly build a sustainable business moat after acquiring substantial capital. Otherwise, this distorted valuation could pose significant innovation risks to the entire industry, heralding a future of cryptocurrency that is more utilitarian, shortsighted, and distanced from the roots of technological enthusiasts.