Internet Capital Markets: The Rise of Meme Coins as Fundraising Tools
Startups and established companies are launching meme coins-and crypto degens are sending their valuations skyrocketing-in a trend known as “internet capital markets.”
In traditional capital markets, entities can raise capital by selling stocks, bonds, commodities, and more. Internet capital markets advances on this idea by implementing a digital-native fundraising tool: meme coins.
As a result, established companies like classic video platform Vine have launched multi-million dollar tokens, while emerging companies like podcasting app JellyJelly have also attracted huge market capitalizations.
What Are Internet Capital Markets?
Internet capital markets is a term that refers to companies raising money or promoting their business using digital-native financial instruments, most commonly a form of cryptocurrency.
most of the time, the tokens have no utility and are purely speculative assets tied to the hype of a project-effectively acting as a meme coin. This is a major distinction between internet capital markets and traditional capital markets, where stocks represent a share of a company and often promise certain privileges or dividend returns.
Companies first started this novel approach to raising capital by launching meme coins via Solana launchpad Pump.fun.Rival platforms such as the Believe app have since rose in popularity as options more directly focused on internet capital markets.
“Internet capital markets is itself a powerful meme, and it’s among the most significant and OG meta-narratives and use cases for crypto,” Alon Cohen, co-founder of Pump.fun, told decrypt.”In principle, it represents the ability to efficiently and instantly crowdsource liquidity on decentralized crypto rails.”
how Did This Start?
In January 2025, Rus Yusupov, the co-founder of mobile video app Vine, launched Vine Coin via Pump.fun. On its first day, the token skyrocketed to an astonishing market cap of $498 million as traders cashed in on nostalgia for the TikTok predecessor.
Days later, Yusupov posted a waitlist link as onlookers speculated that the app was going to be relaunched. More eyes and attention were on Vine than ever before, so much so that xAI bought Vine, and Elon Musk hinted at a relaunch of the app-though it’s not clear if the meme coin played a role in this move. Vine Coin is still yet to deliver any utility and has plummeted 92.5% from its all-time high.
Technically, this wasn’t the first company to release a meme coin; a wave of AI projects launched tokens in 2024, with many using them to fund their projects. However, Vine Coin was the first high-profile example that was branded as internet capital markets, with a wave of projects following suit early in 2025.
The trend slipped off the radar for several months, but was revitalized in May 2025 with the emergence of Believe as a launchpad.
As a result, new product finding tool Dupe saw its token spike to a market cap of $79 million, according to DEX Screener, before dropping 78% to $17 million. AI social media assistant Creator Buddy peaked at $23.5 million and no-code Web3 builder Uber.fun $13.7 million-down 76% and 99% respectively from their all-time highs,as of June 2025.
Why Use Internet Capital Markets?
There are two primary reasons a company may choose the internet capital markets model: money or marketing.
Most commonly,a project is looking to raise capital and will launch a meme coin to help fund its operations. This can either come in the form of selling tokens dedicated to the project-such as the Truth Terminal creator selling Fartcoin-or simply using the creator revenue fees.
This approach comes as traditional fundraising strategies are broken, 0xdetweiler, the pseudonymous founder of investment firm 3rd Street Capital, told Decrypt. He said that companies are over-reliant on venture capitalism, which cuts out regular investors from the conversation. As a result, the target audience for the product usually dose not have an opportunity to invest.
In many ways, the internet capital markets model democratizes fundraising, allowing everyday users to participate in the financial upside of projects they believe in.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments are highly speculative and carry significant risk. Always conduct thorough research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
What are your thoughts on internet capital markets? Share your opinions in the comments below and subscribe to World Today News for more insights on the latest trends in finance and technology!
