Bitget App
Trade smarter
Buy cryptoMarketsTradeFuturesBotsEarnCopy
Vitalik Buterin Cautions Against Political Meme Coins

Vitalik Buterin Cautions Against Political Meme Coins

BeInCryptoBeInCrypto2025/01/23 17:31
By:Landon Manning

Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin warns against meme coins like TRUMP, highlighting scams and loopholes while urging ethical reforms in crypto.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin posted a cautionary screed about TRUMP, political meme coins, and the current state of the crypto industry.

He noted that Gensler left a regulatory loophole in differentiating governance tokens from securities, which has ushered in a wave of bad actors.

Buterin vs TRUMP: Fighting for Crypto’s Future

Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, has displayed a growing anxiety about TRUMP and other political meme coins. In a lengthy social media post, Buterin highlighted a long-form vision of the crypto industry, claiming that “we have been entering a new order” for the last year.

He noted that crypto’s institutional acceptance has allowed bad actors to flourish:

“Now is the time to talk about the fact that large-scale political coins cross a further line: they are not just sources of fun, whose harm is at most contained to mistakes made by voluntary participants, they are vehicles for unlimited political bribery, including from foreign nation states,” Buterin claimed.

For Buterin, the launch of TRUMP was a watershed moment. Nearly 94% of tokens are held by 40 wallets, and scammers have already stolen close to $1 billion, leveraging the hype around TRUMP and MELANIA.

Typically, US Presidents cannot conduct private business in office. Therefore, Trump’s meme coin has created huge concerns, even outside the crypto industry.

However, Buterin did not lay all the blame upon Trump or any other high-profile meme coin issuer. He noted that former SEC Chair Gary Gensler created a loophole in securities laws by designating governance tokens as a potentially separate concept.

In Buterin’s view, Gensler “must never be christened as a hero, even among crypto skeptics,” due to this loophole.

The former SEC chair was widely criticized and despised by the crypto industry for his regulatory crackdowns, even after approving a Bitcoin ETF. Gensler never provided regulatory clarity or closed down the loopholes in current regulations.

However, with the benefit of hindsight, Buterin claims that crypto’s response of “part compliance, part rebellion” led directly to TRUMP. Still, he does see a way forward.

“There is a bright future of capital allocation mechanisms that can be built. Potentially, we can come up with ways to ensure alignment with community wishes as well as safeguarding important values like privacy, security, open standards and open source. Acceleration is coming either way; it is our task to choose the brightest possible vector,” he finished.

Buterin noted that the entire DeFi community has a responsibility to educate newcomers about long-term fulfillment and wealth-building, return towards honest token-based fundraising, and proactively defend the space against this self-destructive market logic.

He suggested a “techno-optimist” d/acc or “defensive acceleration” philosophy to move forward.

0

Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.

PoolX: Locked for new tokens.
APR up to 10%. Always on, always get airdrop.
Lock now!

You may also like

Ethereum Poised for Explosive Breakout After Six Weeks of Consolidation

ETH has traded in a tight 2% range for six weeks, setting up for a strong breakout that could ignite a sharp rally.Six Weeks of Stagnation Turns into Bullish SetupWhy This Consolidation Is DifferentWhat to Watch Before the Pop

Coinomedia2025/06/20 09:00
Ethereum Poised for Explosive Breakout After Six Weeks of Consolidation

SOL Correction Nears End as Bulls Target $220-$250

Solana correction phase is ending; analysts eye a bullish breakout toward $220–$250 in the coming wave.SOL Price Correction Nears CompletionTarget Zone: $220–$250 for the Next WaveWhat to Watch Moving Forward

Coinomedia2025/06/20 09:00
SOL Correction Nears End as Bulls Target $220-$250

South Korea’s FSC Unveils Roadmap for Spot Crypto ETFs and Won‑Based Stablecoins

FSC eyes approval of spot crypto ETFs and easing of won-based stablecoin rules in H2 2025.South Korea Eyes Spot Crypto ETFs by Late 2025Korean Won-Based Stablecoins to See Regulatory ReliefA Broader Shift in Crypto Policy

Coinomedia2025/06/20 09:00
South Korea’s FSC Unveils Roadmap for Spot Crypto ETFs and Won‑Based Stablecoins