Raydium (RAY) Token Jumps 7% as LaunchLab Debuts to Rival Pump.fun

Raydium (RAY) has surged over 7% in the past 24 hours, holding above $2.20, following the launch of its highly anticipated token launchpad

Raydium’s (RAY) native token has surged more than 7% in the past 24 hours, holding above $2.20 following the launch of its highly anticipated token launchpad,

The new platform, named LaunchLab and unveiled on April 16, represents a direct challenge to Pump.fun (PUMP), which severed ties with Raydium last month after launching its own decentralized exchange, PumpSwap. While Pump.fun emphasizes simplicity in its token creation service, LaunchLab provides creators with far greater control over tokenomics and distribution.

Once developers raise 85 SOL (about $11,150), the platform lets developers set the token supply, bonding curves, and migration criteria, with tokens automatically moving to Raydium’s (RAY) automated market maker (AMM).

“LaunchLab’s goal is to fix a broken token model, reliant on centralized exchanges and market makers,” said Tom, the pseudonymous team head from Raydium. “We want that to happen on-chain, on Solana; we think asset issuing will keep accelerating.”

The platform also provides investors with several options for token vesting and a fee-sharing system, in contrast to Pump.fun’s one-size-fits-all approach. Moreover, Raydium is extending its infrastructure to outside developers; already, LaunchLab’s token creation tools are being used by about 10 groups developing projects not on Raydium.

The trading costs of LaunchLab are set at 1%; 25% are set especially for RAY token buybacks, an action meant to directly support the value of the token. A Community Pool and Program fee helps the remaining 75% be used for ecological development.

Investors seem to have reacted to this framework, which helps to explain RAY’s price increase following the announcement. Disregarding most of the larger cryptocurrency market during a period of economic uncertainty, the token briefly rose to $2.41 before settling at its present level.

The launching of LaunchLab comes about a month after Pump.fun began PumpSwap, thus changing the once symbiotic relationship between the two platforms. Tokens made on Pump.fun would immediately move to Raydium once reaching $69,000 in market value prior to this change.

Since its March 20 release, PumpSwap has become quite popular and has accumulated $2.5 billion in trading volume in its first ten days. DefiLlama stats show that PumpSwap has now handled more than $7.3 billion in total volume, with five straight days of record-breaking daily volumes hitting $460 million on April 17.

From a technical standpoint, RAY’s price movements indicate strengthening momentum following the LaunchLab announcement. The token has posted weekly and monthly gains exceeding 30%, establishing a bullish trend despite broader market headwinds.

Raydium’s 24-hour trading volume surged nearly 60% to $668 million after LaunchLab went live, though this remains well below its January 18 peak of $13.19 billion, which coincided with the TRUMP meme coin launch.

As the competition between Raydium and Pump.fun intensifies, market observers will closely monitor whether LaunchLab can recapture market share from PumpSwap. Raydium’s strategy of offering more sophisticated tokenomic tools while implementing RAY buybacks represents a calculated approach to enticing both token creators and investors.

With LaunchLab positioned as just the first product in a broader suite, Raydium appears committed to innovation in the face of Pump.fun’s rapid growth. The success of this strategy will likely depend on whether token creators prefer LaunchLab’s customization capabilities over Pump.fun’s simplicity—a question that could significantly impact RAY’s price trajectory in the coming months.