Memecoin Mania Returns: Solana-Based DApps Report Record-Breaking Fee Earnings

Solana-based decentralized applications (DApps) have reported record-breaking fee earnings due to the resurgence of memecoin activity in the crypto space.

Solana-based decentralized applications (DApps) are enjoying record-breaking fee earnings thanks to the surging memecoin activity in the crypto space. Five of the top ten crypto protocols by fee revenue over the past 24 hours were built on Solana, according to data from the DeFi analytics platform DefiLlama.

Raydium, an automated market maker, generated $11.31 million in fees on Nov. 17, marking its highest daily earnings to date. Liquid staking platform Jito also reported $9.87 million in fees on the same day, notching its third-highest revenue milestone.

Meanwhile, memecoin launchpad Pump.fun and Telegram-based trading bot Photon achieved daily revenues of $1.65 million and $2.36 million, respectively.

The rising fees and activity on Solana protocols can be largely attributed to the memecoin activity. Peanut (PNUT), a token themed around squirrels, has seen a 2,700% price increase over the last two weeks. The memecoin reached a peak valuation of $2.4 billion by Nov. 14.

Its token price surged following Elon Musk's repeated mentions of the token on X. Notably, another memecoin, Dogwifhat, also gained attention after being listed on Coinbase on Nov. 15. The listing briefly pushed its price to a six-month high of $4.19.

Interestingly, this memecoin activity coincides with the launch of the Department of Government Efficiency, a newly established U.S. federal agency under President-elect Donald Trump. The agency's abbreviation, DOGE, mirrors the ticker symbol for Dogecoin, which has also experienced growth, climbing 156% in the last month.

Apart from Solana-based memecoins, its native token, SOL, has also surged in value, reaching $242 on Nov. 17 — its highest price since November 2021. Currently trading at $234, the token is only 8.5% away from reclaiming its all-time high of $259.

In addition to its rising price, Solana’s market capitalization has soared to $104 billion, marking a 44% increase from its previous peak of $77 billion in November 2021.

This growth comes despite the blockchain’s inflationary token issuance, which rewards stakers with newly minted SOL tokens. As per SolanaCompass, Solana's inflation rate currently stands at 4.9%, with an annual decrease of 15%.