What Is Pump.fun?

Pump.fun is a Solana-based memecoin generator that simplifies the process of creating tokens, allowing users to launch their own memecoins without needing technical expertise.

Key Takeaways

• Pump.fun allows users to create and launch their own tokens in a fair and fun way.

• Pump.fun will launch their PUMP token on July 12 2025 primarily via an Initial Coin Offering (ICO).

• LetsBonk.fun, a rival memecoin launchpad, dethroned Pump.fun in daily volumes and revenue for the first time in July 2025, challenging Pump.fun’s status as the market leader.

About Pump.fun

Traditionally, creating a memecoin (or any other tokens) required a deep understanding of smart contracts, liquidity setups, and blockchain infrastructure. However, with Pump.fun, all of these complexities are handled automatically. Users only need to choose their token name, image, and symbol, and with a click, their memecoin is minted and ready for launch.

Since its launch in January 2024, Pump.fun has emerged as a major player in the memecoin space, having facilitated the creation of over 2 million tokens and generating over $100 million in revenue. The platform’s success is fueled by its user-friendly interface, anti rug-pull features and an innovative bonding curve model that dynamically adjusts token prices as demand increases. This model also incorporates a burn mechanism that helps control supply and incentivizes early purchases​.

Pump.fun’s rapid growth has inspired similar platforms like Sun.pump and Scroll.pump, contributing to a broader trend of easy-to-use memecoin generators. However, as the leader in the space, Pump.fun has become a key tool for the current memecoin craze, earning it the title of the “figurative shovel” of the memecoin season.

Why Memecoin Traders Love Pump.fun

Before Pump.fun, memecoin traders faced significant risks of rug pulls, largely because token creators could allocate a large portion of their token supply to themselves before the public had a chance to buy in. This pre-allocation allowed unscrupulous creators to manipulate the market and exit with substantial profits, leaving traders with worthless tokens.

Pump.fun addresses this issue by ensuring a more equitable launch process. When creators use the platform to launch their memecoins, they are not allowed to pre-assign tokens to themselves. Instead, they must purchase the tokens alongside other buyers, which at least minimizes the risk of self-allocation at the genesis stage. Although this doesn’t completely eliminate the potential for rug pulls—creators can still buy up a large share of their tokens later—this system creates a fairer, more transparent starting point for traders.

How Does Pump.fun Work?

Pump.fun works by abstracting away all the technical complications of creating a memecoin. Instead, users enjoy a simple and easy to navigate interface while on the site. When buying or selling tokens, users are promised a Fair Launch, which is a method of launching a token where all participants have an equal opportunity to acquire the tokens at the same price with no pre-allocations. 

The Bonding Curve Mechanism

When a token is created on Pump.fun, it does not immediately trade on an open exchange like Raydium or Orca. Instead, it initially exists exclusively on the Pump.fun platform, where all buying and selling occurs against a bonding curve system.

A bonding curve is a mathematical contract where a token’s price is algorithmically determined by its current supply. The process works as follows:

• Buying: When a user buys the token, they are not buying from another seller. Instead, they send SOL to the bonding curve contract, which mints new tokens for them. This act of minting increases the total supply of the token, and according to the curve’s formula, the price per token moves higher.

• Selling: Conversely, when a user sells their tokens, they are sent back to the bonding curve contract, which burns them from existence. The contract then sends the corresponding amount of SOL back to the user. This reduces the total supply, and the price moves lower along the curve.

All the SOL used to purchase the token is held within the bonding curve contract, acting as the token’s de facto liquidity.

Key Milestones

The journey of a token on Pump.fun is marked by two critical milestones that gamify the process and provide a clear path to legitimacy.

• King of the Hill: This is the first major goal for any new token. When a token’s market capitalization (the total value of all SOL in its bonding curve) reaches a specific threshold, typically around 45 SOL, it achieves the “King of the Hill” status. This grants the token a coveted, prominent position at the top of the Pump.fun homepage, providing immense visibility and free marketing to every user on the platform. This exposure often creates a surge of new interest and buying pressure.

• Graduation to PumpSwap: This is the ultimate objective for a token on the platform. Once a token’s market cap on the bonding curve reaches a much larger threshold (initially around $60,000, later updated to approximately $69,000), it “graduates”. Previously, this meant migrating to Raydium. However, in a significant strategic shift in March 2025, Pump.fun launched its own native decentralized exchange, PumpSwap, which now serves as the destination for all graduated tokens. The process is now as follows:

  1. Upon graduation, the SOL held within the token’s bonding curve is used to automatically create a formal liquidity pool on PumpSwap.

  2. This migration is now seamless, instant, and free, eliminating the previous migration fees (up to 6 SOL) and delays associated with moving to an external DEX.

  3. The liquidity is then locked within the PumpSwap pool, making it impossible for the creator to remove it.

This final step remains paramount. By automatically creating and locking the initial liquidity within its own ecosystem, Pump.fun prevents the most common type of “rug pull” and allows the token to transition from the closed bonding curve system to be freely traded on the open market, all without ever leaving the platform.

From Partnership to Rivalry: The Shift to PumpSwap

For much of its early history, Pump.fun operated in a symbiotic relationship with Raydium, Solana’s leading DEX. Tokens would launch on Pump.fun and, upon graduation, migrate to Raydium for open market trading. However, this process had significant friction points, including a migration fee of up to 6 SOL and delays that could slow a new token’s momentum. In early 2025, this partnership fractured into direct competition. As rumors spread that Pump.fun was developing its own native exchange, Raydium preemptively launched its own memecoin launchpad, LaunchLab, to compete directly. Pump.fun responded almost immediately by officially launching PumpSwap, its own native DEX built on a model similar to Uniswap v2 and Raydium v4.  

This move fundamentally altered the platform’s mechanics. With PumpSwap, token migrations became instant and, crucially, free. All liquidity now remains within the Pump.fun ecosystem, and the platform introduced a new 0.25% trading fee and plans for a creator revenue-sharing model to incentivize high-quality launches. 

The Rise of LetsBONK.fun

However, this strategic pivot had an unintended consequence: it directly contributed to the rise of Pump.fun’s biggest competitor. Now positioned as a rival, Raydium leveraged its new LaunchLab infrastructure to partner with the large and active BONK community, creating LetsBONK.fun. 

LetsBonk.fun achieved a significant milestone in July 2025, surpassing Pump.fun in daily memecoin launches, trading volume and revenue for the first time. A feat that was not hit even by other Solana memecoin launchpad competitors such as Believe. It was the first time that Pump.fun’s market leader status has been challenged and marks the beginning of a serious rivalry between two memecoin launchpads.

The Launch of the PUMP Token

An official announcement confirming the launch of Pump.fun’s platform token, PUMP was announced on 9 July 2025 after rumors and a supposed leak of the launch was released on the crypto exchange Gate earlier. The tokens will launch primarily through a pre-sale known as an Initial Coin Offering (ICO), debunking earlier speculations that the token will launch primarily through an airdrop.

source: https://x.com/pumpdotfun/status/1942947291083493495/photo/1

PUMP Tokenomics

PUMP will have a maximum token supply of 1 trillion tokens and will launch with the following token distribution: 

• Team – 20%

• Existing investor – 13%

• ICO – 33%

• Community & Ecosystem Initiatives – 24%

• Livestreaming – 3%

• Ecosystem Fund – 2.4%

• Foundation – 2%

• Liquidity & Exchanges – 2.6%

Team allocations and ecosystem funds are typically locked and not liquid on Token Generation Event (TGE), this means that the bulk of the liquid token supply on the 12 July will come from the ICO portion (33%) of the token distribution. Pump.fun’s decision to primarily launch through an ICO instead of an airdrop has attracted some controversy on X. This issue was exacerbated as users dug up an old X post by Pump co-founder Alon, who previously stated that “every pre-sale is a scam”, highlighting the hypocrisy of Pump.fun’s decision.

How to Participate in PUMP’s Initial Coin Offering

Users can purchase PUMP in the pre-sale on the following exchanges at 12 July 1400 UTC hours:

1. Bybit

2. Kraken

3. Bitget

4. MEXC

5. Kucoin

6. Gate

In addition to purchasing PUMP on the above centralized exchanges, users can also buy them on-chain through Pump.fun’s official token sale page at https://token.pump.fun/. Note that KYC verifications are required and that US and UK citizens are excluded from this pre-sale. Market volatility is expected on the 12th, so users who intend on participating should ideally complete KYC verifications prior to this pre-sale.

Future Utility of the PUMP Token

Despite the confusion that ensued after the Gate post was deleted, some details about the token’s potential utility had emerged previously. Reports suggested that the PUMP token may incorporate a revenue-sharing mechanism, which would distribute a portion of the platform’s protocol fees directly to token holders. If implemented, this would provide a powerful source of utility and align the financial incentives of the platform with its community of token holders. Pump.fun has been pressured to release this revenue sharing feature due to accusations by X users that Pump.fun is “extractive” and “does not contribute to the Solana community”. Introducing this feature would then likely improve Pump.fun’s social sentiment amongst the Solana community. However, there is still no official confirmation of this feature at the time of writing.

How to Create My Own Memecoin

Step 1: Head to Pump.fun

To get started, head to Pump.fun and connect your Solana wallet.

Step 2: Click [start a new coin]

Choose your token name, token ticker and token image here! You may also fill in some descriptions to give potential token buyers some background on your token idea. Fill in your socials for some added credibility and ownership!

As the creator, you can also choose to send in your buy orders ahead of potential bots and script buying snipers! Note that the first buyer of any token launched on Pump.fun pays a small fee ($2 worth of SOL) for the token’s creation.

Step 3: Buy Your Own Memecoin!

Here’s what the buy page would look like after you’ve selected your memecoin. In this example, the memecoin is halfway through its bonding curve. This means that as more tokens are bought, the price gradually increases according to the bonding curve model, with the market cap goal being $69,000.

The page also presents other important information, such as holder distribution, allowing you to see how many wallets own the token and what percentage they hold. You can also view the latest trades in real-time, offering insights into market activity and momentum. Additionally, a comments section is available for users to discuss the memecoin, share opinions, or raise questions, fostering a community around the token.

Pump.fun Controversies

Pump.fun has been highly successful and widely regarded as the pioneering and current market leader of memecoin launchpads. However, its position at the forefront of a market notorious for bad actors and scams has meant its actions, inactions and design choices have been a source of significant controversy.

Systemic Risk and Scams

The ease of permissionless token creation has inevitably led to the rise of fraudulent projects and rug pull scams. While it may come as no surprise, according to Dune analytics dashboard creator “Adam_Tehc”, less than 3% of crypto wallets made more than $1000 on Pump.fun. Even without data, memecoin launches such as HAWK, MELANIA and LIBRA have made it abundantly clear that memecoins are commonly used as vassals for scams and insider trading. Due to this, Pump.fun’s reputation has been controversial as it has been seen as an enabler of such negative behavior.

The Livestreaming Fiasco

In late 2024, Pump.fun introduced a livestreaming feature that allowed token creators to promote their projects directly to users on the site. This feature quickly devolved into a spectacle of extreme and dangerous behavior as creators engaged in increasingly shocking stunts to attract attention and investment. Reports emerged of streamers conducting inappropriate live shows, playing games of Russian roulette, and engaging in other harmful activities inciting hate or violence. The feature was indefinitely suspended in November 2024 following intense backlash from the community and negative attention from mainstream financial media. While this was not entirely the team’s fault, this episode reinforced the negative stereotype that users of the platform incite and promote harmful activities which damages the overall credibility and reputation of Pump.fun.

The “Gen Z Quant” Incident

This incident perfectly encapsulates the chaotic nature of the platform. A 13-year-old creator, known as “Gen Z Quant,” launched a token and used the livestreaming service to build hype. After the token’s market cap reached $1 million, the creator executed a “rug pull,” dumping his holdings for a reported profit of $30,000 and gloated about the success of his rugpull live on stream saying “thanks for the 20 bandos!” which then became a viral quote. This act enraged the community, leading to a bizarre form of retribution. Angry investors pumped the rug pulled token to a $85 million market capitalization out of spite, while others doxxed the teenager, publicly revealing his name, school, and home address.

Popular Pump.fun Tokens

Pump.fun is the home to many popular memecoins in the Solana ecosystem, and here are some famous examples.

Fart Coin (FARTCOIN)

Fartcoin is a memecoin launched as a joke after being referenced by the AI agent Truth Terminal, the pioneer behind tokenized AI agents. Truth Terminal was first prompted to create a meme that would resonate with the crypto community, and thus FARTCOIN, currently the world’s largest AI memecoin, was born.

Daddy Tate (DADDY)

This memecoin parodies controversial celebrity Andrew Tate. With a comedic website supporting it, Daddy Tate has attracted attention both for its satirical nature and for its market performance. At present, it has a market capitalization of approximately $50 million, reflecting its strong popularity despite its meme-heavy and comedic roots

Moo Deng (MOODENG)

This memecoin draws inspiration from the viral sensation of the baby pygmy hippopotamus that captivated the internet in September 2024 with its adorable appearance. At just two months old, this baby hippo became a major attraction at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand where it lived. Following the creation of the token on Pump.fun, it skyrocketed in value, reaching a market capitalization of over $170 million in just three days, making MOODENG the top memecoin ever launched on the platform.

Conclusion

Pump.fun offers a simple and accessible way for anyone to dive into the world of memecoins, allowing users to effortlessly create their own tokens without needing technical expertise. However, while the platform’s ease of use and fun factor are clear, it’s important to remember that memecoins are notoriously volatile and speculative. Most tokens created on Pump.fun lack intrinsic value or long-term utility, so they shouldn’t be taken too seriously as investments.

Although Pump.fun doesn’t charge any upfront fees for launching tokens, it does impose a 1% fee on all trades, which is significantly higher than the average 0.3% fee seen on most decentralized exchanges (DEXs). This could impact frequent traders but may be worth it for those who enjoy experimenting with token creation in a playful environment​.

Overall, while the platform is enjoyable and can provide a unique introduction to memecoin culture, users should proceed with caution. Have fun exploring the possibilities, but always embrace the speculative and experimental nature of Pump.fun responsibly.

Watch our video on this topic here!