Solana meme coins raised $149m in a week 

Solana prices are near an all-time high as speculators purchase crypto to invest in the next possible meme coin play.

According to ZachXBT, Solana (SOL) token presales have earned over $149.2 million since March 12 amid a meme coin frenzy sweeping the altcoin ecosystem. Influencers and large accounts raised over 796,000 SOL for meme coin cryptocurrencies backed by hype with little to no utility.

The slew of presales has incentivized users across cryptocurrency’s landscape to buy SOL for investing in tokens, otherwise known as “aping into coins”. The crypto grew north of 25% in the past week, rising above $200 at one point per CoinMarketCap. SOL traded around $182 at press time, about 26% below its November 2021 peak.

Solana meme projects duck launch after raising millions 

ZachXBT’s analysis revealed that not every meme coin project launched a token after receiving thousands to millions in SOL from investors. At least 16 presale meme coin creators either refunded users or disappeared with the proceeds. The latter is called a rug pull within the crypto industry. 

NFT project Milady raised over $18 million in Solana’s coin before announcing a U-turn on its proposed plan to tap the ongoing SOL meme coin mania. The team promised to refund all its presale investors and focus on other endeavors.