Solana-based meme coin BONK has experienced a significant surge in value, rising by more than 45% in the past 24 hours after being listed on Coinbase, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange. This move cements BONK’s position as the third-largest meme coin, only trailing behind Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) in terms of availability on the platform.
Coinbase Listing Boosts BONK’s Reputation
Coinbase officially announced on Wednesday that it would list BONK and stated, “Once sufficient supply of this asset is established, trading on our BONK-USD trading pairs will launch in phases.” However, they did mention that support for BONK may be limited in certain jurisdictions. Coinbase’s selective approach to token listings often leads to short-term price pumps for the listed tokens, giving them a sense of legitimacy and attracting the attention of traders.
BONK’s Journey and Adoption within the Solana Ecosystem
BONK tokens were initially issued in December of last year, during a period when sentiment towards the Solana ecosystem was affected by the downfall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a prominent supporter of the network. Despite its origins as a meme coin, BONK quickly gained adoption within the Solana ecosystem. Many Solana projects integrated BONK as a payment method for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and others utilized “burn” mechanisms for NFT-based events following its launch.
The BONK project is composed of a team of 22 individuals without a single leader, all of whom were involved in its inception. Prior to BONK, the team had already developed decentralized applications (dapps), NFTs, and other related products on the Solana blockchain. The growing interest in the Solana ecosystem, especially since October, has significantly increased the appeal of BONK.
Recently, Solana’s native cryptocurrency SOL has experienced substantial gains, and its leading meme coin BONK has reached new all-time highs. SOL touched $73.85 on Friday, marking a new 19-month peak. While it is still a long way from its all-time high of nearly $260 in November 2021, SOL has made an impressive recovery from its low of around $8 in late 2022. Currently trading above $71, SOL has seen an 8% surge in the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko.
Furthermore, Solana’s NFTs have witnessed significantly higher trading volume, surpassing even that of Ethereum. Projects like Mad Lads and Tensorians have experienced substantial price increases, multiplying several times over in recent weeks. With this momentum, the collective trading volume of Solana NFTs has now exceeded that of Ethereum, a blockchain that traditionally leads in trading volume and hosts some of the most valuable projects.
