With Bitcoin dominance over 60% and most alts trailing like a lame horse, retail sentiment in the crypto market is reaching new lows. A previously rapid-fire, high-innovation space has become a breeding ground for meme coin trading, scams, and burnout.

After a decade of growth and development, the market appears to have lost its way, chasing narratives and prioritizing short-term gains over sustainable growth and genuine innovation.

Co-founder of NFT Now, Alejandro Navia, posted,

“After 10  years of being in crypto and trading, I need to address what’s currently happening in our space. This isn’t just another market cycle – it’s something far more concerning.”

Renowned macro analyst and investor Lyn Alden commented,

“Most cryptocurrency applications don’t have true economic fundamentals at major scale. That’s why after like four cycles, the altcoin narrative is “memes” which is to say the joke is that there is no narrative and it’s all player-vs-player.”

Real projects can’t compete with pump-and-dumps

The problem is multifaceted. Meme coin trading has become a 24/7 sprint, where investors are “late” if they haven’t aped into a token within 15 minutes of its launch, and long-term holding is a matter of hours. Just ask the 800k Official Trump coin investors who lost over $2 billion as the token dumped 65% just hours after launch.

The break-neck window for meme coin gains has created a culture rife with FOMO and poor investment decisions. Scams and rug pulls have become rampant, and honeypots and outright frauds are “staggering” in number.

According to Navia, even experienced traders are burning out from the constant rotation and endless parade of “next big things,” while real projects struggle to compete with pump-and-dumps. “We’re burning out builders who are chasing a dragon that doesn’t exist. Real projects can’t compete with pump-and-dumps masquerading as “communities.”

Crypto market needs a return to fundamentals

How do we make crypto great again (MCGA)? The market needs to return to fundamentals; a focus on sustainable growth rather than chasing quick profits. Supporting real builders and projects with genuine use cases is crucial for the market’s long-term health, and community-driven accountability is essential in weeding out scams.

“We need to start having honest conversations about where we’re heading,” he says, “It’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

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