To many, memecoins are one of crypto’s great curiosities. Cryptocurrencies typically aim to solve real-world problems. For example, Bitcoin is a store of value, while Ethereum is a smart contract platform enabling decentralized applications.
Most memecoins, however, don't have any inherent value, and are often compared to monopoly money. They’re playful, and often built around a niche. Dogs, frogs, and presidents have all been represented, and now, cats have become a major focus for memecoin developers. Why? That’s a good question.
In this article, we’ll explore the curious and often comedic world of cat-based memecoins, explaining what they are, why they exist, and introducing some of the leading cat memecoins available to buy today.
Before the cats, we had DOGEs
Looking back on memecoin lore, it seemed inevitable that cats would get coins of their own. DOGE, a dog-themed asset, is one of the earliest memecoins in the crypto space. It was launched in 2013 as a joke, and features the Shiba Inu from the popular ‘doge’ meme circulating at the time. Over the years, DOGE has captured the attention of crypto enthusiasts and traders.
Dogecoin established an early community, which used the coin to tip each other on social media platforms such as Reddit. As its popularity increased, so did the DOGE price. As a result, Dogecoin holders decided to put the token to good use, often participating in various philanthropic efforts. This further increased the asset’s popularity, fueling social media hype and even celebrity endorsements. Elon Musk has been vocal about his love for Dogecoin. So much so, the Tesla CEO has hinted that the electric vehicle manufacturer could accept Dogecoin as payment.
Now, it’s hard to argue that DOGE is merely a fun memecoin without much value. As a consequence, other memecoins have arrived with the aim of emulating DOGE’s appeal and success. That includes Shiba Inu (SHIB) and other dog-themed coins, plus a whole host of other themes.
What are cat memecoins?
Cat memecoins are a category of memecoins themed around cats and cat-related internet memes. Put simply, tokens have gained prominence due to the popularity of cats in online culture.
Cat memecoins add route into the memecoin category, which has mostly been dominated by dog-themed coins. These assets also aim to differentiate themselves from dog-themed coins through their community values. For example, dog memecoin communities are typically centered on loyalty and playfulness — true dog-like traits. Meanwhile, cat memecoins tend to endorse independence, mystery, and amusement. Anyone who’s owned a cat can understand why.
Behind their playful exterior, the rise of cat memecoins reflects the growth of the broader memecoin economy, where culture and relevance are as strong as good tokenomics and protocols. However, it’s important to keep in mind that all memecoins are highly volatile, and are often driven by speculation. If you’re interested in trading memecoins — cat-themed or otherwise — you must proceed with caution, and never trade with more than you can afford to lose.
Top cat memecoins
So what are today’s top cat-themed memecoins? Read on as we walk through five leading feline-focused tokens.
Cats in a dog world (MEW)
Cats in a dog world (MEW) is the most popular cat-themed memecoin at the time of writing. It pokes fun at the dominance of dog-themed memecoins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu. MEW launched on March 2024 as a token on the Solana blockchain with a massive supply of 88 billion tokens. However, 90% of it these assets are locked in a liquidity pool. The remaining 10% of the circulating MEW were airdropped to the Solana community at launch.
With a diluted market cap of over $300 million, the MEW community has convinced major exchanges, including OKX, to list the token. You can trade MEW against USDT on OKX spot, margin, and perpetual futures markets.
Some believe MEW is destined to reach higher heights and become the memecoin to challenge the likes of Dogecoin for supremacy.
Popcat (POPCAT)
Popcat is another memecoin that’s getting plenty of love. Its logo is inspired by a cat named Oatmeal that sparked a famous internet meme in 2020. The asset’s branding features Oatmeal with its mouth wide open, looking shocked. The photo captured the hearts of millions of people, which eventually led to the creation of POPCAT years later.
POPCAT is another memecoin built in the Solana ecosystem. It has a total supply of 979 million tokens, 93.1% of which have been sent to liquidity pools. After launching in December 2023, the POPCAT price spiked by more than 1,600%.
True to the category’s unserious personality, the project has launched a fun game, Popcat click. Here, nations are pitted against each other to see which can make the most clicks and activate Popcat’s familiar open-mouth expression. However, there's no additional utility — just fun and community.
Mog Coin (MOG)
Mog Coin (MOG) is built on the Ethereum blockchain. It was launched in 2023 as a fairlaunch token on Uniswap V2 with a total supply of 420 trillion tokens. 30 trillion tokens have been burnt, reducing the current circulating supply to 390 trillion.
The mascot of MOG is Joycat, a cat that doesn't cope, seethe, or worry about what others think. Mog Coin fosters community participation through the use of memes while dismissing negativity and encouraging positive thoughts.
Wen (WEN)
WEN is another popular cat-themed memecoin launched on the Solana blockchain. Unlike other memecoins, WEN represents fractional ownership as a non-fungible token (NFT).
WEN’s life began after X user @weremeow penned a poem on internet culture, which resonated with crypto communities. Following their success, the poem’s author turned the text into an NFT. However, instead of selling the NFT, they created a token that allowed fractional ownership. Although the NFT has no utility, it underpins an online community built around a shared enjoyment of the poem.
Wen launched in January 2024 with a supply of 1 trillion tokens, 70% of which were distributed to more than one million eligible Solana wallets as airdrops. Another 20% was reserved for liquidity pools, and the remaining 10% was reserved for the treasury.
WEN’s logo is a cat in a space suit, which the project claims to be the cutest cat coin in Web3. 300 billion unclaimed WEN tokens were burned after the airdrop, bringing the total circulating supply to just over 700 billion.
Toshi (TOSHI)
Finally, we have Toshi, a cat memecoin on Base chain. It was launched in August 2023 and named after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong’s cat. Toshi has ambitious plans to be more than a memecoin, and claims to be the “face of Base.”
To support the project’s ambitions, Toshi intends to launch tools on Base, such as a multisender to distribute large-scale transactions, a token locker for projects to lock their tokens, swap tools, and even a launchpad to support other projects.
Toshi also has its own NFT project called NFTOSHIS, which is a collection of 3,000 cats on the Base network. Holders of TOSHI can also participate in governance and vote for upcoming changes on MEOW DAO, their governance portal. The TOSHI token has a circulating supply of 420 billion tokens.
The final word
The cat memecoin category is as diverse and intriguing as the internet's wider obsession with the four-legged creatures. While most projects have been created for fun, tokens such as WEN are trying new things with fractional ownership of an NFT.
Memecoins could therefore cause a shift in how we perceive assets in the crypto space. Although they're mostly speculative tokens driven by memes, social media, and their communities, memecoins might offer a glimpse into the future, where engagement drives value.
As coins such as DOGE and SHIB have shown, memecoins can evolve from being just a joke to a movement. Could the cats be the ones to lead the next wave of development?
FAQs on cat memecoins
All memecoins represent memes and other aspects of internet culture. Cat memecoins are tokens that are exclusively themed on cats. Thery offer a niche appeal for traders who are interested in cats and cat memes.
Cats in a dog world (MEW) is probably the most popular memecoin, being listed on multiple major exchanges. The popularity of memecoins generally depends on how well they engage with their early community and the appeal of the meme behind them. Other popular cat memecoins include POPCAT, MOG, and TOSHI.
Cats have always held a special place in internet meme culture. With the popularity of dog memecoins, cats were inevitably next. Meanwhile, certain other memecoins such as Dogecoin have been around for more than a decade. As a result, some cat-themed memecoins are more appealing because they represent something fresh and fun, and a new opportunity to make gains from their volatility.
Cat-themed memecoins can be found listed on certain major and lesser-known exchanges. You’ll need to do your own research into specific projects to understand where you can buy and trade the project’s tokens, but you may find them on exchanges alongside other established memecoins such as DOGE and PEPE. MEW, however, can be traded on OKX today.
© 2024 OKX. This article may be reproduced or distributed in its entirety, or excerpts of 100 words or less of this article may be used, provided such use is non-commercial. Any reproduction or distribution of the entire article must also prominently state: “This article is © 2024 OKX and is used with permission.” Permitted excerpts must cite to the name of the article and include attribution, for example “Article Name, [author name if applicable], © 2024 OKX.” No derivative works or other uses of this article are permitted.
