Over the past week, the Base-native BRETT meme coin increased by 70%

Over the past week, Base-native meme coin BRETT (BRETT) has increased in value by 70%, now trading at $0.08108 at the time of writing. Its market cap also exceeds $803 million.

While the meme coin is still trading below its all-time high (ATH) of $0.235, reached in August 2022, its momentum is heating up as capital continues to flow into the Base chain. According to on-chain metrics by DeBank, Base now has a total value locked (TVL) of $3.788 billion, showcasing an increase of nearly 1% in the last 24 hours.

The ecosystem is expanding with $4.116 billion in stablecoins and over 1.27 million active users contributing to $275,428 in daily network revenue. Meanwhile, decentralized applications built on Base are earning over $1.17 million per day.

BRETT, often called the “face” of Base memes, has emerged as a cultural symbol within this expanding network. As capital flows into Base, investors are increasingly treating BRETT as an important asset for the entire Base ecosystem. With increasing developer activity and climbing daily usage metrics, BRETT is becoming the go-to meme coin on Base.

The timing couldn’t be better. In a symbolic and structural win for the ecosystem, Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN), the company that launched Base, is joining the S&P 500 index. This will happen on May 19, replacing Discover Financial Services. The announcement has already sent shockwaves through the traditional and crypto markets, with Coinbase stock rallying by over 16% in early New York trading.

As the saying goes…“First they ignore you.Then they laugh at you.Then they fight you.Then they add you to the S&P 500.”…or something like that.

This move will usher Coinbase into the same elite index as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), and could potentially flood its shares with billions in passive inflows from S&P 500 ETFs. State Street’s S&P 500 ETF alone manages over $572 billion, and Goldman Sachs estimates that nearly $3 trillion has flowed into passive funds in the last decade.

BRETT stands to benefit the most. As Coinbase’s profile rises among institutional investors and within traditional finance, so too does the visibility of its Base network and the thriving tokens within it. BRETT’s role as a cultural flagship for Base gives it the kind of narrative tailwind that few meme coins can replicate.

Moreover, technicals are aligning with the macro story. A glance at BRETT’s chart shows a clear bullish breakout over the past week, with strong volume pushing the price from $0.05 to $0.08. The parabolic move on May 9 coincided with Coinbase’s extended-hours pump.

But it’s not all just speculation. Base is proving its economic viability. With over $277,000 in chain fees generated daily and $18.793 billion in total on-chain value moved, the numbers indicate sustained user engagement.

BRETT, by extension, becomes not just a meme but a ticker that tracks the vibrancy of the underlying chain.

As the market digests Coinbase’s S&P 500 inclusion, and Base continues to inch closer to Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) level usage, BRETT may be entering a new phase of its life cycle. One defined less by jokes and more by data. If Base is the rising star of layer-2 Ethereum scaling solutions, then BRETT is the meme that could follow it to the moon.