Crypto never forgets to laugh
The life in crypto is a emotional rollercoaster. Always hope. Always despair. At times, both on the same day. Nothing in between. Yet, the crypto community finds solace in laughter. Well, most days.
I’m not funny.
Okay, maybe a little. Just a wee bit. Enough to get by.
But my life is surrounded with people who can make a dead fish laugh. Sometimes with their stories, sometimes actions and sometimes? At the cost of others.
Almost always, all three of these things rolled in together.
I've tried to be funny. Trust me. A chuckle or two from my inner circle. Mostly pity laughs.
I mean, writing's my job, right? So, surely, humour is built-in. Or so I hope. Like a secret superpower. But Nope. Nada. Zilch.
The thing is, I do crypto. I better be funny.
How else can one possibly get through life, even survive. Above all, stay sane.
Look, if you are in crypto then your world is different. But still the same, no matter the circumstances.
A world of memes, inside jokes, and people laughing at themselves and others. So be it mind-blowing profit or life-ruining losses - crypto never forgets to laugh. No matter what.
So here I am.
The sober, not so funny but full of empathy girl in the corner.
Often wondering if I should laugh or call a therapist.
So I try, I do (with an Indian head nod of agreement).
And I fail. Most of the time. But surviving. Eye of the tiger. Sylvester Stallone style.
The point is, crypto is a riot and not for the light hearted.
It’s a world adrift from the world we’ve been conditioned to believe and accept.
Crypto is volatile. Emotionally. Personally. Socially.
Always flirting with financial instability. Always alluring with life changing money.
Always hope. Always despair. At times, both on the same day. Nothing in between. Never a dull day in crypto.
One of the most volatile markets if you look at it.
We are looking at a $2+ trillion crypto industry.
Let me make the list: The meltdowns.
Remember when Bitcoin was just a weird internet money thing? Yeah, me neither. Then it hit $1,200. Boom.
Then it crashed. Rinse and repeat.
First, there was Mt. Gox (2011 Crash). Then came the ICO craze (2018 crash), where everyone and their dog was launching a token. But with less gold and more scams.
And let's not forget 2020. The year the world went on pause and so did Bitcoin. It roared back to life in 2021, only to get smacked down by the FTX fiasco in 2022.
China was the super power villain last bull run. Banning crypto. Just like Thanos.
2024 has a line up of party spoilers.
Now, here we are in 2024, and it’s still a roller coaster. Thanks, governments, Germany, US and Japan (all the Bitcoin sell-off) for your helpful contributions.
There’s one thing common in all of these meltdowns.
We never forget to laugh.
I laugh, because I have no money in crypto (different matter, some other time).
My colleague. On the other side of 40. Older, for sure. Wiser, not so much.
Very cool though. Cooler than you, cooler than him, cooler than all of them out there.
As cool as cool can be (he reads this, and an Indian head nod in agreement).
Very organised. Effortless perfection. He should have been an artiste. Thank you.
He is a crypto enthusiast with a heart of gold – or at least, he did until recently.
Our man was riding high on the crypto wave. We went all in on Ethereum recently.
Why? Ask yourself, why not? US Bitcoin ETFs are a hit, and brought in a massive rally.
Now that US Ethereum ETFs are in, he expected the same for Ethereum prices.
Had big hopes, Japan did him dirty. Rug pulled.
Booked his losses. Stopped out on his leveraged derivatives positions.
Liquidated. Staring down the barrel of a financial threat.
I stepped in with my world-class condolence skills (no money to offer, maybe a joke or two).
He was still cool. No foetal curl-up. No blood pressure meds. No reviving counselling sessions.
Instead, he threw a party.
A drowning man clutching at straws, or a testament to his resilience? I'm still figuring that out.
The next morning, the senses were back, but the money wasn't.
Yet, there he was, scrolling through crypto memes and dreaming up the next big thing.
Apparently, turning his dogs into memecoins is his latest genius idea.
I’m not sure if I should be impressed or concerned.
What he said? “If you don’t laugh about your tragedy, why are you in crypto?”
Privilege *coughs*.
Nevertheless, man’s got a point.
It all started with a guy, in 2012 buying pizza with 10,000 Bitcoins. He didn’t take it seriously.
He should have, but pizza happy.
We still make memes on every Bitcoin Pizza Day. We make memes over anything.
Crypto and memes, somehow just click.
Maybe because both live on the internet, equally controversial and they've got this rebellious, anything-goes vibe.
And both focus very less on making sense. If you get it, you do it, or that’s the door. Period.
Memes, silly? Maybe. But silly things have value.
Take the Ice Bucket Challenge for example. It was all fun and games, but it raised $220 million for ALS research.
ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is no laughing matter, but we got awareness, thanks to the silly thing. Raised awareness and got people talking.
You got attention, you’re halfway there.
Dogecoin.
It all started with a dog. Not just any dog, but a Shiba Inu with a knowing smirk, dubbed "Doge."
2013, two software engineers, Billy and Jackson, clearly bored and high on caffeine, created the coin.
Dogecoin exploded on Reddit, becoming the go-to tip for online jokesters. Transactions went wild, the Doge-inspired madness spread, most of all, Elon Musk tweeted about it. Case closed.
Every random internet joke, every obscure meme, became a potential crypto.
Now we have cats, frogs, and even a rock with its own digital currency.
One day, a memecoin would be worth more than a small country. The next day, as worthless as a soggy Cheeto.
But, it works. It's crypto.
Something like this will only happen in crypto - Memecoin devs go wild on livestream to pump their tokens.
Memecoins even have their own index - VanEck's MarketVector starts Index to track the largest memecoins.
I often find myself asking this - if the most important job in crypto is making memes, then what exactly am I doing with my sorry crypto journalist life.
Fiat is a serious business.
Conducted in hushed tones and boardrooms. It’s about control, stability and let’s be honest, boredom.
No fun, no community, just cold, hard numbers.
When the market takes a dip, you can almost hear the collective gasp as stockholders clutch their portfolios like they’re holding onto their life savings.
Spoiler alert: they probably are.
Yes, there are memes and jokes on stock portfolios, downturns, policy changes.
Nobody's making millions off those memes. Nobody’s filing ETFs for them.
In crypto, it's like a battle cry - you'll see a million #WAGMI replies in seconds.
But in the stock market? Crickets. They’re probably at home counting their losses, not tweeting about it.
They don’t know the difference between “diamond hands” and “paper hands.”
Oh the slang. Love it. My personal favourite - When Lambo?
It means how long it takes to ride a Lamborghini to the moon?
In the stock market? It’s all jargon - "earnings per share, " "P/E ratio." "market capitalization," and "beta." Sounds smart, but I forget in 10 seconds.
Is this time we change the way we look at money?
This is something crypto fundamentally is supposed to do. Challenge traditional finance in every possible way.
Some of us cannot laugh, party and pick up the next thing to do immediately after losing life savings.
But is that what it is about? Not really.
It’s about freedom, togetherness and how it all feels like things will fall into place and we will go to the moon in that Lamborghini together.
Okay, maybe that's a bit extreme, but you get the idea.
It's about believing in a better financial system, one that's fair and accessible to everyone.
For too long, the financial world has been shrouded in an aura of exclusivity.
Complex terms, intricate processes, and a general lack of transparency have alienated many.
Crypto has shown us that finance can be engaging, relatable, and even fun.
Imagine if financial institutions were as quick with a witty response on social media as their crypto counterparts?
Or if complex financial products were explained in easily understandable memes?
It’s not about dumbing down finance, but about making it accessible.
Just as crypto memes have built strong communities, traditional finance can leverage humour and social media to foster trust and engagement.
By adopting a more conversational tone, financial institutions can break down barriers and make their services more appealing to a wider audience.
From "diamond hands" turning to "paper hands" overnight, to the countless failed moon missions, crypto memes brilliantly capture the absurdity of it all.
The secret to their success? Relatability.
Everyone, from the seasoned investor to the curious newbie to my COOL colleague, has felt the sting of a market crash or the elation of a sudden pump.
Crypto memes mirror these experiences, creating a shared sense of humour among the community.
Pessimism, it turns out, is a surprisingly effective marketing tool.
By acknowledging the potential pitfalls and laughing at them, crypto memes build trust and authenticity.
They humanise the often-intimidating world of crypto, making it more accessible and less daunting.
“OPTIMISM IS THE best bet for most people because the world tends to get better for most people most of the time. But pessimism holds a special place in our hearts. Pessimism isn't just more common than optimism. It also sounds smarter. It's intellectually captivating, and it's paid more attention than optimism, which is often viewed as being oblivious to risk.” - Morgan Housel.
Crypto memes. It's more than just a funny picture.
They help to create a supportive community where people feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and ideas.
Where you can actually make your dog wear a fanny pack and call it a memecoin? Nobody’s calling you a fool, they bet on you instead.
I did call my colleague a fool.
But again, I’m not that funny.
Buttercup Picks: The Good Reads
Memecoins Can Be Money, Too - by Byron Gilliam, Blockworks April 2, 2024
Meme Coins - Social Infrastruture for crypto by Meow, R89 December 2023
Memecoin mania can teach us something - by Hayden Patrick, Blockworks April 24, 2024
The Evolution of Memes and Their Place on Blockchains - by Galaxy Research June 2024
Stop calling dogecoin a memecoin — those are actually popular - by David Canellis, Blockworks February 23, 2024
The most important trend in crypto? It’s always been memecoins - by Ryan Whitehead, Blockworks May 7, 2024
Memecoins, Cryptocurrencies Based on Internet Memes, Roar Back - by David Yaffe-Belany, The New York Times July 27, 2024
CryptoCurrencyMemes - Sub-Reddit community.
Top 100 Crypto Memes To Make You Laugh - by Geri Mileva, Influencer Marketing Hub, May 23, 2024
10 signs you’ve been in the crypto industry too long - by Yohan Yun, Cointelegraph August 09, 2024