Back in 2013, Dogecoin (DOGE +0.77%) was launched as the first “meme coin” — a cryptocurrency based on a meme, joke, or pop culture trend rather than a technical purpose. Many meme coins skyrocketed in 2021, driven by social media buzz and speculative traders, but fizzled out as rising interest rates chilled the market in 2022 and 2023.

In 2024 and 2025, the Trump Administration’s crypto-friendly policies, new AI tokens, and political tokens warmed up the meme coin market again. But this year, the market cooled off again as rising rates and Treasury yields drove investors away from cryptocurrencies.

Image source: Getty Images.

Some investors profited from the meme coin mania, but many others were badly burned. That wasn’t…