Behind the On-Chain Meme Coin Wealth Myth: How Does Retail Money Flow into BTC and ETH?

Recently, a certain public chain ecosystem has completely exploded in popularity. Meme coin projects are springing up like mushrooms after the rain, and get-rich-quick stories are playing out every day.

The community is filled with myths of “buy before bed, wake up financially free.” Screenshots are everywhere, and everyone is shouting about massive profits. Retail investors are so swept up by these stories that they’ve abandoned basic research and don’t even look at the secondary market anymore. All their focus is on trying to dig up the next 100x coin in the primary market.

But very few people calmly consider: whose loss is your gain?

This game has never been about “everyone making money”

The market always follows the 80/20 rule. Those profit screenshots flooding your feed are either insider trades by the project team or selective displays—only showing the wins, never the losses.

Why? Because these get-rich stories are needed to attract new retail investors (“fresh meat”) into the market.

When everyone is fantasizing about “so-and-so’s life,” the truly smart money has already quietly exited. They’re not chasing meme coins anymore, but moving most of their funds back to the secondary market—allocating to more liquid and certain mainstream assets like BTC and ETH. Maybe they’ll leave a small amount to keep speculating on-chain.

By the time retail investors realize the “golden meme coins” on-chain have turned into “dead coins” and try to chase mainstream coins, it’s often the end of the market cycle. By then, those who got rich off the “so-and-so life” have already swapped their holdings for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Who is actually making money?

The answer is clear: institutions, KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders), and “scientists” (developers/bot operators).

The playbook is simple. Institutions team up with a bunch of KOLs to launch tokens, riding the wave of trending topics for maximum exposure. Hundreds of projects might be launched in a single day, possibly by the same group of people. Once a project gains traction, KOLs rush in—they buy first, then pump it on social media.

“Scientists” use tools to front-run, and retail investors follow behind. But by the time the average person sees the news, the price has already gone up at least 100x. Early entrants might get a small piece, but latecomers are just exit liquidity for the insiders.

Don’t believe in “fair launches.” If an ordinary person launches a project, even if it catches a trend, without KOLs backing it, no one pays attention.

Of course, a few retail investors might catch the wave and make some money. But project teams aren’t afraid of you making a quick profit—they’re afraid you won’t keep playing. Most retail investors, after a small win, will jump into other projects and end up losing it all.

By the time you realize what’s happened, you’ll see that after playing the game with institutions for so long, all your funds have ended up as someone else’s Bitcoin and Ethereum. The meme coins you stubbornly held have already gone to zero.

The force behind this game

Frankly, this is a feast designed by a major exchange.

Think about it—if the crypto space keeps developing like this, what future is there? If Wall Street enters and sees this scene, they’re likely to be furious.

As the house, a certain exchange holds a large amount of platform tokens. They pump the price to create hype, making the entire ecosystem the center of attention. Then they collaborate with KOLs to fabricate meme coin get-rich stories—stories of turning a few thousand dollars into millions spread across the internet, attracting more people to join in the dream. KOLs all praise in unison, creating the illusion that “everyone can get rich.”

Meanwhile, those who were prepared are selling at the top, passing the baton to those who enter last.

What should retail investors do?

If you don’t have an edge in technology or reliable insider information, it’s best to stay away from this game.

Wealth is never achieved through overnight riches. Those who truly achieve financial freedom usually go through several bull and bear cycles—gaining experience through volatility and holding strong at the lows. Mainstream assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum are the tools that can carry wealth over the long term.

Instead of going all-in on meme coins, it’s better to allocate to assets with real value.

Meme coins might make you some pocket money, but those “10x or 100x” get-rich stories belong to a tiny minority. Most people will lose everything in this game. Even if you do make a windfall from the “so-and-so life,” if your financial management doesn’t match your gains, you’ll lose it all again sooner or later.

Right now, this wave of wealth creation is peaking, and the exit liquidity may already be lining up. Once this meme coin craze fades, the market focus will most likely shift back to mainstream assets.

The next phase may not be on-chain speculation, but in Bitcoin and Ethereum.

I can’t persuade everyone to stop playing—after all, blocking someone’s path to wealth is like being their mortal enemy. I just hope everyone stays rational. Don’t let a moment of impulse destroy the capital you’ve accumulated over time.