The meme coin market from April 28 to May 4, 2025, was a rollercoaster period for the crypto and meme coin space, littered with pump explosions, institutional milestones, and celebrity drama. In the weekly recap today, we discuss the vibrant trends, market drivers, and key happenings that dominated the period.
Meme Coin Weekly Recap: April 28 – May 4, 2025
Meme coins dominated headlines with ridiculous returns fueled by X-hype, community sentiment, and speculation. The sector thrived on wild stories, from farce to finance analysis. The below are the best-performing meme coin trends.
Fartcoin ($FARTCOIN) Reigns Supreme
Fartcoin ($FARTCOIN) dominated the meme coin throne, pumping 121% for the month and 26% in one day to achieve a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, taking the lead from $DOGE and $SHIB. Whales and savvy investors loaded up on the token heavily, triggering all-time-high open interest and a volume boom to $96.8 million. Its Solana-based performance and daft branding boosted its 70x growth to $20 million.
Shiba Inu ($SHIB) Signals Comeback
Shiba Inu ($SHIB) made waves with a 22,000% burn rate spike, burning 327 million tokens in 24 hours to limit supply and enhance value. $SHIB jumped 6.5% on Apr. 29, driven by increased staking after the ShibaSwap feature launch. $SHIB’s community-driven initiatives pointed toward a potential comeback despite the fierce competition under the shadow of Fartcoin.
NEET and Bonk Ride Solana’s Wave
NEET surged 30% in a week, trending on Dexscreener as the emblem of crypto’s ‘no resume, no job’ philosophy and drawing speculations. Bonk ($BONK) gained 14%, one of the top performers on Binance, riding the tide of the prosperous memecoin ecosystem on Solana with FART and PENGU. Fartcoin-capital flows powered their gains, with PENGU leading the meme charge on Solana as well.
Grassito ($GRASSITO) Explodes 4000%
Grassito ($GRASSITO) skyrocketed 4000% in 24 hours to an in-market capitalization of $2.4 million with $2.1 million in trading, sparked by the $2,000 buy by @SolportTom. Its whimsical narrative and Solana’s low-cost trading infrastructure fueled its viral spike, with X community hype offering the booster meant to fuel exponential growth.
Chill Guy ($CHILLGUY) Breaks Out
Chill Guy ($CHILLGUY) jumped 31% in 24 hours to $0.03837 on trading volume of $3.842 million. After breaking through key trendlines, its relaxed branding and X hype among its fans made it an overnight breakout hit and piece of Solana’s memecoin phenomenon.
Other Notable News: April 28 – May 4, 2025
The broader crypto space buzzed with revolutionary action, ranging from institutional acceptance to policy reform and market suspense. Below is an overview of the key events that characterized the week.
Bitcoin Lags but Shows Bullish Signs
Bitcoin rose by over 30% recently, approaching its all-time high of $109K but lagging behind meme coins’ rocketing surge. A 5-year low in exchange supply and $112 billion ETF inflows fueled the optimism as Ark Invest predicted $2.4 million by 2030. Meme coins such as Fartcoin gained favor among the traders as the attention was diverted from the gradual rise of BTC.
21Shares Files for Dogecoin ETF
The House of Doge introduced 21Shares to list the first US spot Dogecoin ETF with the intent to hold DOGE through Coinbase Custody. The filing opens doors for meme coins to enter the mainstream, with 75% approval prospects in 2025, which has the potential to increase the legitimacy of $DOGE.
BlackRock’s $150B Tokenization Push
BlackRock has committed to tokenizing its $150 billion Treasury Trust Fund through “DLT Shares” on the blockchain, which is held by BNY Mellon. The step enhances transparency with no direct exposure to crypto, following BlackRock’s $2.5 billion BUIDL fund and extending to surpass JPMorgan and Fidelity in real-world asset tokenization.
Truth Social’s Utility Token Plan
Truth Social unveiled a digital wallet and utility token for the Truth Social network, starting with Truth+ payment streams and subsequently financial services, supported by $250 million investment in crypto. The memecoin $TRUMP lost 10% as a result of market concern regarding competition.
Sui Boosts Bitcoin DeFi with sBTC
Sui integrated sBTC, an asset backed by Bitcoin on Stacks, to unlock the locked value of $9.6 billion and grow Bitcoin DeFi liquidity. The integration makes Sui the leading DeFi hub as Stacks and Sui partner to advance the utility of BTC in decentralized finance.
Ripple’s $20B Circle Bid
Ripple has reportedly raised its offer for Circle, the issuer of the $61 billion USDC, to $20 billion after a rejection of $5 billion. The bid is aimed at backing Ripple’s cross-border payment plans, aligning with Circle’s U.S. IPO plans and Ripple’s regulatory wins.
UK’s Crypto Purchase Ban Proposal
The UK’s FCA has suggested prohibiting the use of credit to buy crypto, as 14% of Brits are using credit in 2024. Exemptions to regulated stablecoins are on the cards, triggering debate about how to achieve consumer protection and innovation.
MOVE Token Crashes Amid Scandal
The MOVE token plunged by 22% after market maker Web3Port’s associated seller dumped 66 million tokens, leading to the suspension of co-founder Rushi Manche. Coinbase and Binance halted trading and an internal probe has now been initiated, but investors’ trust is shaken.
Trump Endorses 1M Bitcoin Purchase
Senator Cynthia Lummis’s BITCOIN Act to buy 1 million Bitcoins received approval from President Trump, which thrilled the market. It would be the largest crypto buy ever, and it could move the price of the BTC higher.
Cardano Whales Fuel Rally Hopes
Cardano whales bought 410 million ADA, with ADA trading at around $0.70 and aiming to reach $1.40 and $3.20. Some predictors envision $9 in the next bull run, fueled by solid technicals and whale buying.
Conclusion
April 28 to May 4, 2025, was a week of meme coin drama punctuated by Fartcoin’s $1.16 billion market cap and Shiba Inu’s burn rate spike. Solana tokens NEET, Bonk, and Grassito followed the trend, but institutional acceptance in the form of BlackRock’s tokenization and 21Shares filing for Dogecoin ETF signaled what was to come. But the MOVE token disaster and competitive hot spots exposed the industry’s vulnerability. With meme coins burning harder than Bitcoin, investors will need to tread carefully in the volatile market, balancing speculative potential and caution.
