What Are Internet Capital Markets? Why Companies Are Launching Meme Coins

Startups and established companies are launching meme -coins and crypto -days sending their ratings – in a trend that is known as ‘internet capital markets’.

In traditional capital markets, entities can attract capital by selling shares, bonds, raw materials and more. Internet capital markets are progress on this idea by implementing a digital-native fundraising tool: meme coins.

As a result, established companies such as Classic Video Platform Vine have launched several millions of dollars tokens, while emerging companies such as podcasting app Jellyjelly have also attracted huge market capitalizations.

What are internet capital markets?

Internet capital markets is a term that refers to companies that raise money or promote their business with the help of digital-native financial instruments, usually a form of cryptocurrency.

Usually the tokens are of no use and pure speculative assets are bound by the hype of a project – effectively act as a meme coin. This is a major distinction between internet capital markets and traditional capital markets, where shares represent a share of a company and often promise certain privileges or dividend yields.

Companies started for the first time with this new approach to launching capital by launching meme coins via Solana Launchpad Pump.Fun. Rival platforms such as the To believe App has since risen in popularity, because options are more directly focused on internet capital markets.

“Internet capital markets is a powerful meme itself, and it is one of the most important and OG-Meta stories and use cases for crypto,” Alon CohenCo-founder of Pump.Fun, said Decrypt. “In principle, it represents the ability to crowdsourcing liquidity on efficient and immediately crowdsourcing in crowdsourcing.”

How did this start?

In January 2025Rus Yusupov, the co-founder of Mobile Video App Vine, launched Vine Coin via Pump.Fun. On the first day it shot token to an amazing one Market capitalization of $ 498 million While traders invented nostalgia for the predecessor of Tiktok.

Days later, Yusupov posted one waiting list As spectators speculated that the app would be launched again. More eyes and attention were to vine than ever before, so much so that Xai Vine bought, and Elon Musk hinted on a relaunching of the app – although it is not clear whether the meme coin played a role in this movement. Vine Coin still has to provide some use and has fallen 92.5% from all time.

Technically, this was not the first company that released a meme -Munt; A wave of AI projects launched tokens in 2024, where many used them to finance their projects. Vine Coin, however, was the first controversial example that was branded as internet capital markets, with a wave of projects that follow at the beginning of 2025.

The trend slid a few months from the radar, but was revived in May 2025 with the rise of Believe as a launch platform.

As a result, the new producting tool Dupe saw its token peak to a market capitalization of $ 79 million, according to Dex ScreenerBefore you fall 78% to $ 17 million. AI Social Media Assistant Creator Buddy peaked at $ 23.5 million and no-code web3 builder Uber.fun $ 13.7 million-down 76% and 99% or their all-time highlights respectively, from June 2025.

Why use internet capital markets?

There are two primary reasons why a company can choose the model for internet capital markets: money or marketing.

Usually a project wants to attract capital and will launch a meme coin to finance its activities. This can come in the form of selling tokens that are dedicated to the project – such as the Truth Terminal Creator that sells Fartcoin – or simply use the income costs of the maker.

This approach is because traditional fundraising strategies are broken, 0xDetweilerThe pseudonym of investment firm 3rd Street Capitaltold Decrypt. He said that companies are too dependent on venture capitalism, which cuts regular investors from the conversation. As a result, the target group usually has no chance for the product to invest.

In many ways, the trend of the internet capital markets is a re -packaging of the initial currency that offers movement that dominated the industry in 2017, said 0xDetweiler.

“Web3 is built to allow founders to raise money from the public [and] Shipping innovative products, “he explained.” They get a community, capital and find the product market fit. The Go to Market is much faster than traditional Web2 startups. “

But some projects do not need capital; Instead, the Meme Coin strategy is a marketing trick.

For example the Russian research laboratory lab Neiry Lab told Decrypt That it had already taken care of venture capital financing when traders pumped a token that focuses on his rat experiment. Given that the Laboratory De Meme -Munt as a marketing instrument embraced it to help make it grow his presence on social media.

IQRAM Magdon-IMMail, co-founder of Jellyjelly and Venmo, said that Jellyjelly drew 10,000 registrations on the day it launched his meme-mint that one hit one $ 248.5 million market capitalization. The founders have categorically excluded that the tokens were once sold for financing, but have since integrated it in the app as a way to give makers on the podcasting platform with a short shape.

However, market participants have noted That many of the projects launched under this strategy are not serious long -term projects that are worth investing in. Despite what some call ‘atmosphere coded nonsense’ and ‘vaporware“Products, the tokens often still pump to market caps of several millions of dollars.

Fortunately, Matthew Nay, senior research analyst at Messari, is not so bad.

“I think it is healthy when the market reacts exaggerated to this idea,” said Nay Decrypt. “Speculation stimulates prices higher, which in turn leads to more capital that comes on the market, and then leads to more projects being financed that want to explore these new ideas.”

Is this all legal?

It is worth noting that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has set companies in the aftermath of the ICO Boom of 2017 for the violation of securities laws with different victories of several millions of dollars.

Should companies worry about driving on the Hype train?

“Companies that are considering launching meme -coins – in particular those who are linked to their brand or company – must look for legal guidelines to assess whether their token functions as a capital increase or an investment option implies” Carlo d’Angelo told Decrypt.

“This requires a factual legal analysis,” D’Angelo explained. “If the token” runs and talks “as a capital increase, it can satisfy the elements of an investment contract under the Howey test and require registration with the SEC.”

That said, the times have changed since 2017, with US President Donald Trump clearly being more open to crypto-infused financial models he finally launched his own meme-mint.

D’Angelo pointed to the SECs February 2025 personnel On meme coins, which seems to mark a shift from his earlier hardline posture against Crypto. The statement claims that meme coins “may not be subjected” to the federal securities laws.

“The central legal question remains: does the token work as a capital increase or as a purely speculative, community -driven meme?” D’Angelo said, adding that: “The answer is crucial to determine whether securities laws apply.”