Memecoin vs. Shitcoin: A Cultural Mismatch

Let's get straight to the point, memecoin and shitcoin are two completely different things. memecoin — free and uninhibited, derived from the collective resonance of Internet culture; shitcoin — ephemeral, speculative, and soulless; Confusing the two is not only a semantic error, but also a cultural mismatch.

Original author: Mannay

Compiled by Odaily Planet Daily

Translator: Azuma

Let's get this straight, memecoin and shitcoin are two completely different things.

memecoin — free and uninhibited, derived from the collective resonance of Internet culture;

shitcoin — ephemeral, speculative, and soulless

Conflating the two is not only a semantic error, but also a cultural mismatch. Calling a token like TRUMP or LIBRA a memecoin is like mistaking a shadow for the moon.

Memes spread from brain to brain like viruses - Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene (1976)

From Dawkins’ definition of a meme as a “unit of culture” to the creation of DOGE in 2013, memecoins have become the intersection of internet culture and decentralized finance. It is now most important to distinguish between true memecoins — cultural products born of community humor, shared values, and organic spread — and shitcoins designed to capitalize on speculative mania. Conflating the two is not just a semantic error, it undermines the cultural foundation that makes memecoins so fascinating. Memecoins are stories that can be traded as assets, and their value is just a byproduct of collective beliefs.

Memes are not static images or jokes: they are cultural genes that mutate and spread through human interaction. Dawkins’s metaphor in 1976 described memes as “selfish replicators” vying for dominance in the attention economy. Memecoins like DOGE or PEPE also embody this evolutionary process:

A meme (such as DOGE) mutates into a token, gaining financial utility while retaining its cultural DNA.

As an ecosystem, the community amplifies memes that resonate with shared values (humor, rebellion, nostalgia).

The blockchain infrastructure accelerates the replication process, generating more than 40,000 memecoins per day.

Unlike shitcoins, which lack cultural adaptability, memecoins thrive by being embedded in collective memory. They also bridge two eras of internet culture: Web2 and Web3.

In Web2, memes are centralized commodities. Platforms like Reddit and Twitter monetize viral content through advertising, but creators rarely benefit financially from it. It spreads through platforms like Reddit or Twitter, but its monetization process is isolated - the platform earns ad revenue, not the creator. The rise of DOGE in 2013 is an example of this, with its community funding charities but lacking ownership of the financial value of the meme.

Web3 transforms memes into self-sovereign assets, where communities monetize their cultural labor. Memes also become tradable “equity” that is governed by decentralized communities rather than corporate algorithms. This shift is actually revolutionary, as memes have been transformed from ephemeral content to lasting cultural capital. For example, PEPE reclaimed the Pepe-themed meme from Web2 appropriation, enabling holders to “own” a part of Internet history.

Real memecoins will follow a Darwinian development trajectory:

Birth: A meme is tokenized, usually as a form of satire;

Growth: Communities use humor and nostalgia to build social capital;

Maturity: Successful memecoins develop quasi-social utility (holders invest not only for profit but also for identity);

Legacy: memecoins either fade away (most) or evolve into cultural symbols/community legends. For example, DOGE’s persistence stems from its myth of charity.

Shitcoins bypass this life cycle. They are financial zombies — devoid of narrative, they are only harvested through predatory tactics and pump and dump. They lack cultural support, which dooms their life cycle to be short-lived.

Memecoins effectively archive internet subcultures into the blockchain and function as 21st century folklore. Shitcoins, in turn, lack this emotional resonance and fail to generate community loyalty. They exploit trends without contributing to cultural narratives, alienating cryptocurrencies from their “countercultural” roots. They are parasites of memes and are fundamentally different from memes.

The real challenge now is to maintain cultural integrity. The confusion between memecoin and shitcoin has threatened the cultural foundation of cryptocurrency - exploitative tokens have led to the erosion of trust, low-quality copies have stifled innovation and diluted creativity, volatility and scams have attracted heavy-handed regulation, endangering creative freedom...

Let’s take a look at some history. Created in 2013 by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer, DOGE began as a parody of Bitcoin and a nod to Doge-themed memes. The entire project was full of self-deprecating humor. However, it was this irony that helped it stand out in the increasingly serious and competitive crypto space. Within a few months, a loyal community (you could call it a “cult”) quickly emerged, funding the Jamaican bobsleigh team for the 2014 Winter Olympics and sponsoring causes such as clean water initiatives. These early philanthropies revealed a community spirit that went beyond speculation.

Susan Blackmore wrote in The Meme Machine (1999) that the success of