 ▲ Meme coins decline amid negative developments from the Middle East/ChatGPT-generated image © |
As geopolitical tensions originating in the Middle East weigh on global asset markets, the highly volatile meme coin sector within the cryptocurrency market has been hit hard. With investor sentiment extremely subdued, selling pressure on speculative assets is intensifying.
As of 9:13 a.m. KST on March 2, according to CoinMarketCap, the total global meme coin market capitalization fell 2.48% over the past 24 hours to $30.02 billion. As investors adopt a wait-and-see stance, daily trading volume has also plunged 9.29% to $3.38 billion.
Major meme coins are all trading in the red. Dogecoin (DOGE), the sector leader, is down 1.82% from 24 hours earlier at $0.09227, barely holding above the $0.09 level. Shiba Inu (SHIB) fell 3.86% and Pepe (PEPE) dropped 4.95%, with top meme coins by market capitalization posting steeper declines than major coins such as Bitcoin (BTC). Only a few emerging tokens, including Memecore (M), bucked the trend with a 4.13% gain.
This downturn in meme coins appears to be an inevitable result of heightened macroeconomic uncertainty. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization is down 1.49%, while the Fear & Greed Index stands at 16, indicating “Extreme Fear.” In the wake of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran, demand for safe-haven assets has strengthened, leading funds to exit the riskiest segment of the crypto ecosystem—meme coins—first and fastest.
Experts say the future direction of the meme coin market will depend heavily on whether leading assets such as Bitcoin recover and whether tensions in the Middle East stabilize. If concerns over surging oil prices and falling global equities ease and Bitcoin firmly holds the $65,000 level before rebounding, meme coins could experience sharp upward momentum due to their inherent volatility. However, if geopolitical risks persist and investors remain in a state of “Extreme Fear,” further price corrections and a drought in trading volume across the meme coin sector are likely unavoidable.
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