Editor | Wu Talks about Blockchain
In this conversation, WuSay founder Colin and "Memecoin New King" Murad Mahmudov discussed the unique role and prospects of Memecoin (such as Doge, Pepe, etc.) in the cryptocurrency field. Murad shared his transformation from a Bitcoin believer to a Memecoin investor and explained the community driving force behind Memecoin's success. He believes that Memecoin is not only an object of short-term speculation, but also a social innovation with stronger "mass wealth creation" potential than traditional VC tokens. Murad emphasized the importance of evaluating the Memecoin community and leadership, and predicted that the participation of the Asian market will drive the global Memecoin craze. In addition, he took a wait-and-see attitude towards AI Memecoin, believing that more time is needed to evaluate its community vitality.
Murad introduces himself
Colin: Hi, Murad. Some people call you the new generation "King of Memecoin", and you became more famous after the 2049 Summit in Singapore. First of all, can you introduce your background and experience?
Murad: Okay. My name is Murad, I’m from Azerbaijan and I went to college in the United States. During that time, I spent a year in China, specifically in Beijing. This year was special because it was at the end of 2013, when Bitcoin experienced a bubble and the price reached $1,000 for the first time. I was lucky to meet Chinese and Western friends in Beijing, all of whom were early members of the Bitcoin community, which gave me my first exposure to cryptocurrency.
I took a break, but from 2016-2017, I got more deeply involved in crypto. I worked in traditional finance in Hong Kong, and also worked as a commodity trader in Singapore. But from 2017, I started to focus on crypto full-time - writing, reading, investing, trading, and analyzing various patterns and trends in the industry. This time, I am building a DeFi protocol, but I am also personally very focused on investing, trading, and analyzing Memecoin. Memecoin is my core focus in this cycle.
Princeton's East Asian Studies and Finance majors
Colin: I've read your interviews and some people mentioned that you graduated from Princeton University, one of the top universities in the United States. This is also part of your reputation in the community - people say that you pay more attention to data and graphs when analyzing Memecoin, rather than just focusing on "hype" techniques, right? Can you tell us how you got into Princeton and what you studied there?
Murad: I applied as an international student. I feel a bit lucky because, being from Azerbaijan, I faced slightly less competition than some of my international friends who were from China. Princeton’s main areas of study were East Asian studies and finance—these were my core interests. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there, met a lot of great classmates and professors, and was really glad to have that experience.
Early Crypto Career and Insights on OKX
Colin: What did you do after graduation? When did you officially join the crypto industry? I saw in your interview that you met some OKX employees in Beijing. Is this related to your entry into the crypto industry? You also mentioned that your previous fund suffered a setback around 2020. Can you talk about this?
Murad: In 2013, when OKX was still called OKCoin, there were only four people at the time—three Chinese and one foreigner. That foreigner happened to be my friend in Beijing, and he encouraged me, “You need to get into BTC, you need to study BTC.” That was really my first exposure to Bitcoin. But for the next two or three years, I didn’t do much in the crypto space. It was probably around 2016-2017 when I returned to the crypto space and devoted myself to it full-time.
Switching from traditional trading to Memecoin
Colin: When you first joined the crypto industry, you didn’t focus on Memecoin, right? You were more into traditional trading at the time?
Murad: Yes. In 2017, I did hold a little Dogecoin, but I wasn’t a true believer at the time—more like an occasional stab at ICOs, altcoins, and other trading opportunities. I was exploring the space in 2016 and 2017, but by 2018, I became a Bitcoin maximalist, a hardcore Bitcoin enthusiast.
What many people don't understand is that much of Bitcoin's philosophy and literature is excellent preparation for understanding the Memecoin space today. Why? Because today's Memecoin craze is about building community, almost like building a "faith" or a new technological "religion". In this sense, Bitcoin has been the largest and most successful community "faith" of this type. Therefore, my point is that the Memecoins that will succeed are those that are similar to BTC in terms of community and faith following. Doge was also a key influence because it was one of the early successful Memecoins.
To answer your question, I did have some Dogecoin in 2017, but I sold it in 2018 - it was more of a casual holding at the time. However, by 2023-2024, I began to see the potential of Memecoin and became a stronger believer in the Memecoin space.
Bitcoin has meme qualities, but it is primarily a store of value
Colin: So you think Bitcoin has meme qualities, right? Are you still a Bitcoin maximalist?
Murad: In terms of currency, yes, I am still a Bitcoin maximalist. I think Bitcoin is a core currency, and Memecoins are not really "currencies" in the true sense, they are different asset classes. So, is BTC a Memecoin? BTC does have some meme qualities, but I would divide it like this: Bitcoin is probably 80% store of value, 10% medium of exchange, and 10% memes. Memecoins are exactly the opposite - about 90% memes, and maybe only 10% as currency or store of value, or other functions. Different asset classes in crypto have these components, but in different proportions.
Memecoin's success comes from fair distribution and community, while VC tokens suffer from overvaluation
Colin: OK, looking back over the past year, what do you think has driven the popularity or success of Memecoin? Does this also reflect the failure of VC-backed tokens?
Murad: There are several reasons behind this trend, and I'll mention a few. First, when altcoins first became popular in 2017, many of the initial valuations were reasonable. For example, you could buy Binance Coin (BNB) at an initial valuation of about $30 million. Chainlink (LINK) was about $25 million, and even Ethereum launched at a valuation close to $35 million. These starting points are critical to sustainable growth.
Today, many VC tokens go through several rounds of private fundraising before being made available to the public. When these tokens are launched and available for public trading, they often launch with very high valuations—sometimes $10 billion or even $15 billion—even though they have no user base, revenue, or even complete software. When a token launches with such a high valuation without substance to back it up, its price is almost certain to fall.
Over the past 5-6 years, I have called this practice "global IQ arbitrage". VCs are effectively taking advantage of uninformed investors around the world. The problem is that many retail investors treat tokens as stocks or equity, but this is a misunderstanding. In reality, these tokens are often very loosely connected to the underlying software, or even lack a substantial connection.
We are now facing an oversupply of tokens and inflated valuations. Many newly listed tokens have continued to fall in price after listing on major centralized exchanges, and there are still $160 billion worth of tokens to be unlocked in the next four years. This situation is a bad investment environment for ordinary investors.
I think more and more people, especially younger investors, are realizing that these so-called "tech" altcoins are essentially just memecoins with a "tech" label. If they are all just memecoins in the end, why buy VC-backed tokens at a high price of $20 billion instead of participating in early ICO tokens like Chainlink or BNB? When you launch a project from the early stage, gradually grow the community, and cultivate a fair, bottom-up approach to development, it will form a real journey that benefits ordinary people.
When regular people are able to build wealth through Memecoin, a passionate and loyal community is formed. Those who profit from Memecoin's success often leave their jobs to work full-time to help promote, grow, and strengthen the community. This is how Memecoin has been able to build a strong faith following. This level playing field is causing altcoins to lose ground, while Memecoin is currently thriving.
It is recommended to hold selected high-quality Memecoins for a long time
Colin: You talk a lot about holding Memecoin, but some people think Memecoin is just a short-term trading asset. Why do you think Memecoin can be held for the long term? When is the right time to sell?
Murad: My whole philosophy is to stop trading and focus on holding — or “hodling” as we say. I know that 99.999% of Memecoins are just hype projects; they are extremely volatile and go up and down almost every day because of the hype. But my view is that there will be about 10 to 20 Memecoins that will be able to develop in this cycle.
These memecoins will have strong, near “religious” communities – similar to Dogecoin, which has been successful across multiple cycles. Doge has performed well across three cycles, and we think there will be three to five memecoins in this cycle that will continue to perform across multiple cycles. These memecoins will make new highs and then higher lows over multiple cycles, even into 2027 and beyond, and may peak again in 2028-2029.
So, I am not looking at short-term trading or gambling in Memecoin, my goal is to identify projects that can be held for the long term for more than a year. As for when to sell, I recommend taking partial profits in the fourth quarter of 2025 or the first quarter of 2026 - about a year from now. This is why I encourage everyone to find high-quality Memecoins with solid communities and hold them as long-term investments.
The key to investing in Memecoin is community strength and “diamond hands”
Colin: I know you have already selected some coins that you think are the best. But for the community or others, what strategies would you recommend to help them choose Memecoin?
Murad: The key thing to understand is that when you invest in Memecoin, you’re not just investing in the meme itself — you’re investing in the people behind it. It’s critical to research and analyze the community. Look at the average investor in the community, the largest holders, the leadership team, how active they are on social media, and the concepts they promote.
My view is that some select Memecoins will have a culture of "diamond hodling" i.e. committed long term holders. You can actually track these behaviors through on-chain data and analytical tools, not just subjective impressions. Look for communities with strong "hodling" culture and diamond hodling, these are the ones worth investing in.
In general, look for Memecoin projects that have a realistic chance of reaching a market cap of $10, $20, or even $50 billion. If the community truly believes they can reach those levels, many will choose to hold rather than sell. That way, you can treat it as an investment rather than a simple trade.
The US election has limited impact, and global economic factors are the main driving force
Colin: Do you think the results of the US election will affect Memecoin?
Murad: I don't think so. Although Trump may be slightly more friendly to cryptocurrencies, the popularity and success of cryptocurrencies, especially Memecoin, does not depend on the four-year election cycle. Instead, I think it is long-term economic issues such as inflation and global money supply that drive people to cryptocurrencies and Memecoin, rather than any political events.
Public wallet addresses have little impact, and holding strategies are also public
Colin: Does making your wallet address public affect you? Some people say your address is already public, right?
Murad: Yes, many people already know my address, it has been public for a while. I don't have any problem with it because anyone can check my wallet and see that I only buy, not sell. I mentioned in many podcasts and different occasions that I plan to partially take profits in the fourth quarter of 2025. You can verify that I did what I said.
Meme projects need market makers, but they need to choose “clean” partners
Colin: What do you think about the role of market makers in the Memecoin space? For example, companies like Wintermute or DWF? We also saw that GSR, another major market maker, recently faced trouble with the US government, but they are still involved in many Memecoin projects, right?
Murad: My take is this: some market makers operate cleanly and transparently, while others do not. I won’t name any, but if you are part of the Memecoin project, you will inevitably need a market maker eventually, especially when listing on a tier-one exchange. My advice is to choose a clean market maker with a good reputation and transparency to ensure that the project runs smoothly and maintains a good image.
Centralized exchanges remain a key source of liquidity for Memecoin
Colin: What do you think about the importance of centralized exchanges for Memecoin, such as listing on Binance?
Murad: I think centralized exchanges are still important because many users do not trade on-chain and focus on centralized platforms. Hundreds of millions of people use these exchanges. While their importance may gradually decrease in each cycle, they are still important players in this cycle for liquidity and access.
Solana is the preferred platform for Memecoin, but multi-chain is the future trend
Colin: There has been some discussion in the Asian community about Solana and Ethereum - especially since Solana's price has performed well in this cycle. Why are most Memecoins being issued on Solana, and does Ethereum still have a chance?
Murad: Most Memecoins choose Solana because it is cheaper and faster. Young people are active on platforms like TikTok and Twitter all day long, pursuing speed, which makes Solana more attractive. So, yes, currently about 99% of Memecoins are on Solana.
However, I think the best Memecoin will eventually be released on both Solana and Ethereum, and even expand to more chains through cross-chain bridges (such as Wormhole) and other cross-chain solutions. In the future, I expect the strongest Memecoin to go multi-chain. I personally don’t care too much about which specific chain, but more about reaching out to as many chains as possible. You can think of each chain as a centralized exchange that provides access channels for different user groups. Therefore, the more chains a Memecoin touches, the better it is for its distribution and community growth.
Focus on Ethereum and Solana, less attention to Bitcoin ecosystem
Colin: So are you also paying attention to gaming projects like Bitcoin Ordinals or other chains? Do you think Memecoin will also appear in the Bitcoin layer 1 ecosystem or on platforms like TON?
Murad: Frankly, I don’t pay much attention to the Bitcoin ecosystem. I have some interest in Bitcoin Ordinals and certain projects (such as Bitcoin “punks”), but most of my focus is still on Ethereum and Solana. These two platforms have historically had a more active Memecoin culture, are closer to retail users, are better able to attract new users and provide more experimental space for new applications and infrastructure. TON is also interesting, but I think the main capital and innovation of Memecoin in this cycle will flow to Ethereum and Solana.
Expecting increased participation in Memecoin from Asian markets
Colin: Also, many of the well-known Memecoins are still concentrated in the Western world, right? Are there any well-known Memecoins in the Asian or Eastern markets?
Murad: Yes, we are definitely seeing growth in interest in Asia. For example, the Pepe community has a large following in China, and smaller tokens like Pop Cat are also popular across Asia. From what I have seen so far, I believe that in the coming months, especially from the first quarter of 2025, more Chinese, Korean, and Japanese communities will join the Memecoin space. Right now it is true that there is more Western involvement, but I expect Memecoin to become a truly global phenomenon next year.
AI Memecoin has potential, but it will take time to mature
Colin: In addition, the AI tokens supported by a16z are very popular recently, but there seems to be no AI-themed Memecoins supported by you, right? What do you think of AI-themed Memecoins? Would you consider adding them to your portfolio?
Murad: I am still working on AI tokens. I do think AI themed memecoins will form a separate category, just like dog or cat themed tokens. I think they will become a unique category in the memecoin space.
Ultimately though, Memecoin is not a technological innovation, but a social innovation. My view is that the core of Memecoin is about people and community. Since AI tokens are relatively new, their communities need more time to develop. They need more price fluctuations and sideways movements for the community to grow and consolidate. So I may need another month or two to observe the stability of these AI tokens and see which ones have strong price support and community growth. This is usually what I look for.
Colin: Got it. I have many friends who primarily trade Memecoin because, as you said, the valuations of VC tokens are so high that it is difficult for the average person to make a profit. For many people, VC tokens are more likely to lose money, while Memecoin provides an easier opportunity to get in. Tokens that are listed on major exchanges usually experience price drops and disappointment.
Murad: Yes, absolutely.
Colin: Okay, thank you for your time.
Murad: Thank you, I appreciate it!
