Shocking Data: Bots Dominate Pump.fun and LetsBonk Memecoin Launches, Says Coinbase Exec

Are the thousands of new tokens flooding platforms like Pump.fun and LetsBonk truly community-driven initiatives? A recent statement from a high-ranking Coinbase executive sheds light on the likely reality behind this rapid creation cycle, particularly concerning the proliferation of memecoins.

Coinbase Exec on the Rise of Crypto Bots

Conor Grogan, the head of product at major crypto exchange Coinbase, recently shared his insights on the token creation landscape on platforms like Pump.fun and its Solana-based competitor, LetsBonk. His conclusion? Crypto bots are likely responsible for launching the vast majority of tokens seen on these sites today.

Grogan posted data to X showing that top accounts on LetsBonk were launching tokens at an astonishing rate – averaging one new token every three minutes over a 24-hour period. This pace strongly suggests automated processes rather than manual human effort.

Pump.fun vs. LetsBonk: A Tale of Two Platforms

LetsBonk, launched in late April, quickly emerged as a rival to the established Pump.fun. It gained traction partly due to its association with the Bonk (BONK) token and related rewards. While Pump.fun pioneered the model of easy token creation, LetsBonk has recently surpassed it in certain metrics:

• **Token Deployment:** LetsBonk saw over 22,000 tokens launched in a single day, significantly outpacing Pump.fun’s roughly 9,800.
• **Revenue:** LetsBonk generated around $1.23 million in revenue in a recent 24-hour period, nearly double Pump.fun’s $520,400.

This data underscores the rapid growth and intense activity, much of it bot-driven, on these platforms facilitating easy memecoin creation.

The Scale of Bot Activity on LetsBonk

The data shared by Grogan and available on platforms like Dune Analytics paints a clear picture of the scale. Just 13 wallets were responsible for launching 4,281 tokens in one 24-hour window on LetsBonk. The single all-time top creator wallet has launched over 4,600 tokens, with the second highest launching nearly 500 in a single day alone.

Despite this massive volume of launches, very few of these tokens achieve significant traction. A ‘graduated’ token is one that gains enough volume on the creation platform to be listed on a decentralized exchange. Out of the thousands launched by the top 25 creators, only 37 have graduated, highlighting the low success rate and the likely speculative or experimental nature of bot-driven launches.

Memecoins Market Share Decline Continues

The revelation about bot activity comes as the overall memecoin market has seen a continued decline in total market value. After hitting a peak of $127.3 billion in December 2023 (around the peak popularity of Pump.fun), the sector has trended downwards. The market capitalization recently dropped 2.6% to $54.7 billion in a single day, according to CoinMarketCap data.

While there was a slight bump in April, coinciding with the launch of LetsBonk, the general trend indicates traders may be shifting focus away from this highly speculative segment.

Summary: What Does This Mean for the Market?

The observation from the Coinbase executive confirms what many suspected: the barrier to entry for launching tokens on platforms like Pump.fun and LetsBonk is so low that it facilitates widespread automation. While these platforms enable rapid experimentation and community token launches, they are also clearly being heavily utilized by bots for high-frequency, low-success-rate deployments. This bot-driven volume contributes to the platforms’ activity and revenue but doesn’t necessarily reflect genuine organic interest in the vast majority of tokens created. It’s another layer of complexity and speculation within the volatile memecoin landscape.