What is The Memecoin Supercycle and When is It Coming?

Crypto Twitter (X) has been on fire recently with chatter about the next ‘memecoin supercycle.’ The supercycle, if and when it happens, is expected to deliver massive price gains in popular meme coins and mint a new generation of crypto millionaires.

There are many signs the next memecoin supercycle could be just around the corner. Technical charts point to a repeat of 2020-2021, while meme coin prices are on the rise and new meme coin ICOs are raising huge amounts of money.

In this guide, we’ll take a closer look at the memecoin supercycle, including what it is, when it’s coming, and how you can prepare.

What is a Memecoin Supercycle?

A memecoin supercycle is an extended period in which meme coin prices rocket higher amid a wave of frenzied speculation and hype.

A defining feature of the memecoin supercycle is that prices almost universally go up across the meme coin sector. Gains are not limited to major tokens like Dogecoin or Shiba Inu but rather extend to lesser-known meme coins and newly launched coins.

During a supercycle, prices for popular meme coins can rise 10x-100x, while newer tokens with smaller market caps can explode 1,000x or more.

A memecoin supercycle can happen at the same time as a crypto bull market, but a bull market is not a prerequisite for a supercycle.

Origin of The Term ‘Memecoin Supercycle’

The term ‘memecoin supercycle’ was first coined by crypto analyst and meme coin investor Murad Mahmudov. Mahmudov has proposed a theory in which meme coins offer a never-ending spiral of prosperity based on the decentralized communities they foster. Mahmudov explained the theory in detail in a talk at the crypto conference Token2049.

While many crypto traders have come around to Mahmudov’s memecoin supercycle theory, there are still plenty of skeptics. For example, analyst Jameson Lopp called memes “a terrible store of value” because of their short lifespan between pump and price collapse.

So, it’s not universally agreed that a memecoin supercycle will happen or that it will be sustainable. It’s also possible that the supercycle theory could be altered in the future to adjust to market trends or that the theory could be proven false.

History of Previous Memecoin Supercycles

While the term ‘memecoin supercycle’ is relatively new, the crypto market has witnessed explosive price gains in meme coins in the past that might be considered supercycles in retrospect. Let’s take a look at these past meme coin cycles.

2017-2018

The first memecoin supercycle occurred in 2017-2018, at the same time that Bitcoin first caught fire and gained the world’s attention. At the time, Dogecoin was one of the only meme coins in the crypto market, and it saw its price explode from $0.0002 in February 2017 to a then all-time high of $0.122 in January 2018—a more than 61,000% increase that also saw $DOGE’s market cap jump over $1 billion for the first time.

Dogecoin’s price fell back to $0.0020 by early 2019, bringing the supercycle to an end. However, this higher “base” price represented a permanent 10x gain in the value of $DOGE—which is still the largest meme coin—and primed traders for the next period of explosive meme coin gains in 2020-2021.

2020-2021

The biggest meme coin supercycle to date occurred in 2020-2021 when meme coins posted truly eye-popping gains in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. $DOGE rocketed from $0.0025 in late 2020 to its all-time high of $0.7376 on May 7, 2021—a gain of 29,500%. Dogecoin really entered the mainstream during this period, in part thanks to backing from Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

What made the 2020-2021 supercycle so noteworthy is that it involved a much wider range of meme coins than the 2017-2018 cycle. Shiba Inu—launched as a Dogecoin competitor in August 2020—exploded more than 173,000x and minted dozens of meme coin millionaires. Other meme coins launched after the supercycle was already underway, like $FLOKI, also delivered massive gains for early investors.

This cycle ended in December 2021, when crypto prices across all sectors collapsed and the market entered an extended ‘crypto winter.’ However, prices for most major meme coins remained elevated compared to where they were in 2020 throughout 2022-2023.

2023-2024

The most recent meme coin season kicked off in December 2023, with the appearance of numerous meme coins on the Solana blockchain. Some of the top Solana meme coins launched during this period include $WIF, $BONK, $POPCAT, and $MEW. $WIF, which posted the greatest gains, soared from an initial market cap of around $100 million to an all-time high market cap of $4.4 billion by March 2024.

While Solana meme coins dominated this supercycle, established meme coins like $DOGE, $SHIB, $FLOKI, and $PEPE also saw massive gains. $PEPE, which launched in April 2023 in the midst of the crypto winter, exploded nearly 3x from January to March 2024.

Key Signs That a Memecoin Supercycle Has Begun

Past memecoin supercycles have shared several common patterns, and traders can watch for these to predict when another meme coin season is about to begin. Here are 4 of the most important signs to watch.

Parabolic Meme Coin Price Movements

One of the best signs that a memecoin supercycle is coming is explosive growth in meme coin prices. Prices often rise for a broad range of meme coins in the run-up to a supercycle, including established large market-cap meme coins, emerging tokens, and everything in between.

Rising meme coin prices are not just predictive of a meme coin season—they’re also part of the catalyst. That’s because price gains induce more retail traders to buy up meme coins in the hope of finding big gains, generating even more hype.

Meme Coins Outperforming The Crypto Market

Price gains in meme coins don’t just follow gains in the rest of the crypto market in the lead-in to a meme coin season. Rather, they are disproportionately high compared to gains in major meme coins and utility tokens. Meme coins can even post significant gains when Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other top altcoins are losing value.

Rapid Increase in Number of New Meme Coins

Another sign that a memecoin supercycle is on the horizon is a marked increase in the number of new meme coins hitting the market. These new meme coins could be released through presales or airdrops, or listed directly on exchanges to begin trading.

Not all of these new meme coins will take off, but many will as hype around meme tokens builds. In addition, the overall value invested in meme coin presales and ICOs will increase, demonstrating the vast amount of money moving into the market.

Extremely High Trading Volumes

Early memecoin supercycles are also characterized by trading volumes—on both decentralized and centralized exchanges—that are high above normal. Trading activity should be broadly increased across the meme coin sector, even as individual tokens experience massive surges in volume. Increased trading volume can be accompanied by high volatility, and this should generally drive prices higher even as tokens experience ups and downs.

Is It a Memecoin Supercycle Now?

The question on every meme coin trader’s mind is ‘When is the memecoin supercycle coming?’ While it’s impossible to know for sure, the answer could be that it’s already happening.

All of the signs of a new memecoin supercycle are coming into place this fall. The overall value of the meme coin market has increased from $48 billion to $60 billion—a 20% gain—in the past 30 days. Meanwhile, $DOGE is up 51% in the past month, while $BTC is up just 12%.

Trading volume is also on the rise: volume across established meme coins has jumped from $3.5 billion in early October to nearly $10 billion at the end of the month. Volume in $DOGE alone exceeded $4 billion compared to just over $1 billion earlier in the month.

Another signal that a meme supercycle could be approaching—or is already here—is that new meme coins are exploding in value. Some analysts are also pointing to similarities between current technical patterns in Dogecoin’s price and patterns that preceded the 2020-2021 memecoin supercycle. The setups look very similar, suggesting that Dogecoin could rocket higher again and take the rest of the meme coin market with it.

Still, there’s no way to confirm whether a memecoin supercycle is happening now. It can only be recognized in retrospect, so meme coin investors must make a leap of faith that meme coin prices will continue rising.

Top Strategies to Make Money in a Memecoin Supercycle

While there are many opportunities for traders to make money in a memecoin supercycle, it’s important to have a clearly defined strategy. Let’s take a look at 3 proven strategies to stay one step ahead of price gains and maximize your profits.

Get Early Entry with Meme Coin Presales

One of the best approaches to profit from a meme coin season is to focus on emerging tokens, particularly presale meme coins. Crypto presales give you an opportunity to buy a new meme coin at a discounted price before trading begins. Most presales also raise the token price in successive stages, so early investors can score a deal and earn unrealized gains before the coin even starts trading.

You can also increase your earnings by staking your memecoin supercycle tokens before the presale ends. Many new meme coins offer triple-digit returns ahead of listing.

Swing Trade with Sentiment Analysis Tools

Swing trading enables you to take advantage of explosive short-term price movements in meme coins that occur over several hours or several days. It can be a powerful method to profit from the volatile nature of meme coins during a supercycle without necessarily having to pick cryptos to invest in for the long term.

Many traders rely solely on technical charts to swing trade meme coins, but you can potentially take your trading and profitability to the next level by also using crypto sentiment analysis tools like LunarCrush. These tools analyze social media chatter on X, Reddit, Discord, and more to find out which meme coins are about to enter the spotlight. You can use this market sentiment information to get in early on hot tokens before they experience a huge run-up in value.

Participate in Airdrops for New Coins

Many new meme crypto projects offer airdrops for early investors and community members who complete tasks like sharing the project on social media. These airdrops are a chance to get free tokens, often just before or just after a new token lists and excitement is at its peak. Meanwhile, the meme coin benefits from increased community engagement and interest.

Those free tokens represent instant profit, although it’s often worthwhile to hold onto them rather than sell them in a supercycle since prices could continue rising. You can also stake coins earned through an airdrop to increase your holdings even further.

Best Practices During a Memecoin Supercycle

In addition to the strategies above, it helps to have a few tricks up your sleeve to make the most of a memecoin supercycle. We’ll share several of our favorite tips and best practices.

• Monitor social media platforms: Meme coins go viral on social media, so it’s important to keep an eye on chatter on X, Reddit, Discord, and Telegram in order to find out what memes and tokens are gaining traction. The earlier you discover that a token is heating up, the earlier you can buy in and ride the upward price momentum.

• Track Influencers: Crypto influencers play a major role in drawing attention to emerging meme coins and building hype for them. That in turn can drive up prices—so watching which tokens influencers are praising can give you insights into which tokens are next to explode.

• Diversify Across Several Coins: Even if you do your research, there’s no guarantee any one meme coin you buy will go up. Diversifying your crypto portfolio by buying several different meme coins increases the likelihood that you’ll land a winner and turn a profit.

• Secure Profits Early: Many meme coins follow a similar trajectory: they gain attention, skyrocket in price, and then fall back to earth rapidly after reaching a peak. It’s important to make sure you lock in your profits before the peak. When in doubt, err on the side of selling slightly too early rather than slightly too late.

Conclusion

The next memecoin supercycle could be just around the corner, so it’s important for traders and investors to be ready. You need a clear strategy for approaching the meme coin market and tools to find the best tokens to buy.

FAQs

What Is A Memecoin Supercycle?

A memecoin supercycle is a long period in which meme coin prices rise exponentially. Supercycles, also known as meme coin seasons, typically last 6-18 months and are accompanied by a large increase in the number of new meme coins.

How Often Do Memecoin Supercycles Happen?

Memecoin supercycles have occurred roughly every 2-3 years since 2017. Past supercycles have occurred in 2017-2018, 2020-2021, and 2023-2024.

When Was The Last Memecoin Supercycle?

The last memecoin supercycle occurred earlier in 2024, during the Solana meme coin frenzy. This meme coin season was dominated by Solana meme coins like $WIF, $BONK, $MEW, $POPCAT, and others, but it also saw emerging meme coins on the Base network take off and boosted established meme coins like $DOGE, $SHIB, and $PEPE.

Can You Predict A Memecoin Supercycle?

It is possible to predict a memecoin supercycle by looking for patterns that have marked the start of broad price gains in the past. These include quickly rising meme coin prices and growing trading volume. A large increase in the number of new meme coins being launched could also signal a coming memecoin supercycle.

Who Came Up With The Term ‘Memecoin Supercycle’?

The term ‘memecoin supercycle’ was created by crypto analyst Murad Mahmudov, who is himself a meme coin investor. The term has been embraced by many in the meme coin community as a way to describe an expected period of rising prices.

References

• Murad Mahmudov: The Memecoin Supercycle TOKEN2049 Singapore 2024 (YouTube)
• Memes should not be coins (X)
• Dogecoin price surges after tweets from Elon Musk and Mark Cuban (CNBC)
• How two brothers went from nearly jobless to multi-millionaires with a bizarre crypto bet (CNN)
• SOL Crosses $200 as Meme Coin Frenzy Bumps Demand for Solana Network (Yahoo)

Source: cryptonews.com