Crypto traders are sparing no expense to get their hands on newly-issued meme coins in hopes of turning a quick profit in the meme season, with some paying exorbitant fees to secure a large portion of the token supply.
On Monday, on-chain data revealed a trader who shelled out a staggering 64 ether (ETH) in fees to acquire 84 ether worth of $FOUR, a recently-launched meme token based on the popular “4” meme from Crypto Twitter.
This eye-popping transaction translated to spending over $120,000 for $156,000 worth of FOUR tokens. However, it’s worth noting that the trader was only the second buyer of FOUR, and their investment has already skyrocketed in value, with an unrealized profit of nearly $240,000.
DEXTools data further highlights the frenzied activity surrounding FOUR tokens. On its first day of trading, the meme token witnessed trading volumes of $136 million and currently boasts a market capitalization of $24 million as of Wednesday. Early investors in FOUR are now sitting on profits ranging from $240,000 to $2 million, explaining why traders were willing to fork out such exorbitant fees to secure their tokens.
Interestingly, the current crypto landscape is witnessing a surge of speculative interest in meme-based assets rather than traditional fundamental plays. This trend has significantly contributed to the surge in gas fees on the Ethereum blockchain.