The Believe ecosystem is rapidly gaining traction, siphoning market share from pump.fun as the Solana memecoin launchpad landscape heats up

The Solana SOL memecoin launchpad space is witnessing a seismic shift as the Believe ecosystem emerges as a formidable challenger to pump.fun

The Solana SOL memecoin launchpad scene is heating up, with pump.fun facing increasing competition from the rapidly growing Believe ecosystem.

As Interest Capital Market (ICM) spawns new tokens and trading opportunities, more capital is flowing into the memecoin launchpad space on Solana.

This had a mixed impact on platforms like pump.fun and LetsBONK, with validator on-chain activity surging 57% to $3.63 million daily in mid-May 2025, but pump.fun’s weekly fees dropped 27.5% from $18.2 million to $13.2 million between May 5 and May 17.

This downturn was attributed to the swift rise of Believe, which siphoned activity by offering a differentiated value proposition focused on startup and utility-focused token launches, unlike pump.fun’s memecoin-centric model. Among the tokens launched on May 15, pump.fun claimed a 57% share with 21,700 tokens, followed by LetsBONK at 18% with 6,800 tokens, while Believe had 12.9% with 4,900 tokens.

However, looking at the total token market capitalization, which measures the market value of all tokens launched by each platform, the hierarchy shifted dramatically.

The data revealed that pump.fun held a meager $6.8 million in total token market capitalization, whereas Believe boasted a substantial $200 million, showcasing the significant capital mobilized by the platform’s initiatives.

This disparity arose from the types of tokens being launched. While pump.fun facilitated the creation of memecoins, which typically started with low capital and high liquidity, Believe had been attracting developers aiming to launch startup and utility-focused tokens.

These tokens, despite being fewer in number, commanded higher initial capital due to the startup and utility projects' inherent value propositions.

Moreover, Believe’s unique bonding curve design, which limited early token supply and discouraged speculative sniping, appealed to developers seeking fairer launches, further contributing to the platform’s rapid growth.

This rapid growth of the Believe ecosystem was fueled by the booming popularity of ICM in 2025.

With over 200,000 Solana addresses engaging in ICM-related activities daily, the concept of users converting their tweets, posts, or digital engagement into tokens that could be traded was exploding, essentially creating decentralized markets for social capital.

This popularity arose from the explosive growth of memecoin launchpads and the democratization of fundraising, both of which benefitted from the framework of ICM.

Among the platforms facilitating this new wave of tokenization, Believe stood out with its tweet-to-token model, generating $7.04 million in weekly fees by mid-May 2025 as users created tokens via social media interactions.

This synergy with ICM's framework positioned Believe as a leading platform, driving significant capital inflows as it captured the growing interest in social-driven token economics.

However, despite facing this competitive pressure and a decline in weekly on-chain activity, pump.fun remained a dominant force in the memecoin launchpad space.

This dominance was attributed to the platform’s user-friendly design and established user base, particularly in the memecoin segment.

After removing token creation fees in August 2024 and shifting costs to the first buyer, who paid a 0.5 SOL ($80) reward to the developer of a successful token, pump.fun kept its services accessible, which contributed to the launch of 37.8K tokens in a single day in mid-May 2025.

For instance, on May 14, at the peak of activity, of the 37.8K tokens launched, pump.fun claimed 57% with 21,700 tokens, followed by LetsBONK at 18% with 6,800 tokens, and Believe at 13% with 4,900 tokens. But when looking at the tokens that had already graduated, shifting from the launch stage to be fully operational, the hierarchy changed.

At their peak performance last week, the competitors took nearly 50% of tokens deployed and nearly 60% of graduated tokens.

This shift was attributed to the platforms’ competitive edge in specific domains. For example, LetsBONK excelled in graduating tokens, showcasing its ability to guide projects through the launch process successfully. In contrast, Believe's strength lay in deploying new tokens rapidly, highlighted by its swift integration of ICM.

This competitive pressure was also evident in recent tweaks by pump.fun to creator rewards, aiming to retain a larger share of the revenue generated by the tokens launched on its platform.

However, despite these adjustments, Believe was siphoning away market share with its innovative approach, including a focus on non-meme