What happened?
The meme coin market plunged about $28 billion in under 48 hours, falling roughly 40% from $72 billion to $44 billion before a partial rebound. Big names like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and Pepe dropped double digits while many BNB and Solana launches collapsed, some losing as much as 95%. The sell-off came after a wider market crash and heavy liquidations following a political tariff shock that sent traders rushing for the exits.
Who does this affect?
Retail traders and speculators who jumped into newly minted meme tokens took the biggest hit and saw large losses. Smaller investors concentrated on BNB Chain and Solana launch frenzies were particularly exposed, while launchpads, exchanges and trading bots still collected fees. The downturn also rattles broader crypto investors and leveraged participants who felt the knock-on volatility and liquidations.
Why does this matter?
The crash highlights how concentrated, fast-moving and illiquid the meme sector is, which raises systemic risk during market shocks. It could shift capital away from risky memecoins back toward larger tokens, ETFs and NFTs, changing short-term liquidity flows. Ongoing volatility may bring more regulatory attention, discourage new token launches, and further concentrate power with platforms that collect trading and launch fees.