The story of cryptocurrency’s rise to mainstream reputation is without doubt one of the most weird in historical past. Created by an nameless, shadowy determine named Satoshi Nakamoto—who’s now among the many richest individuals on the earth—the know-how is now a darling of finance bros, altruistic lefties, white supremacists, Balkan political dissidents, West African entrepreneurs, and Redditors satisfied that Satoshi was in actual fact an alien.
So it's hardly stunning that 2025 started with U.S. President Donald Trump launching a meme coin simply days earlier than his inauguration. And it solely acquired weirder from there, from school youngsters betting on whose sperm was the quickest to betting on which aggressive dancer can twerk the toughest.
Let’s elevate our glasses and pour one out for the 13 greatest WTF moments of this surreal yr in crypto.
1. Literal shit cash
Crypto devs pays you for something lately, even your poop.
In August, a brand new app appeared that paid customers in Solana-based POOP tokens in alternate for footage of their bowel actions. The ostensible thought was that by documenting peoples’ caca, the app would be capable of present actionable insights and recommendation on how you can enhance their intestine well being.
After all, since that is crypto, the app needed to earn a living, and its alleged aim was to promote your knowledge to analysis establishments, insurance coverage corporations, or well being complement corporations. The app hoped that it may amass the biggest and most detailed fecal dataset on the earth, which may assist push ahead the following part of crap science.
2. A token dinner
President Donald Trump launching a meme coin would've been sufficient to make this record. Trump then internet hosting a dinner for the highest holders of that meme coin would've additionally made the lower. However somebody creating one other meme coin impressed by that dinner?
OK, positive, why not? An nameless attendee of the Trump meme coin dinner created a Solana meme coin from his telephone, and shared movies from contained in the unique occasion on Telegram. In that chat, the meme coin creator confirmed Trump dancing to the well-known homosexual anthem "YCMA," Justin Solar posing for a photograph, and, in fact, the meals.
Sadly, the DINNER token failed to realize a lot traction. It topped at a measly $450,000 market capitalization earlier than it crashed and burned, changing into one of many thousands and thousands of meme cash that grew to become yet one more canine’s dinner.
3. A token in your twerks
A dude from California created a crypto-fueled aggressive twerking competitors.
Viewers may vote by sending presents that have been purchasable through crypto, in addition to guess through a crypto sportsbook. Although the preliminary heats have been extra like reputation contests than sporting occasions, the founding father of Twerk From Residence mentioned his aim is to make the competition a official sports activities league akin to the UFC.
Congratulations to dancer Laura Cintron, who received the competitors and took house a $10,000 money prize.
4. Chill Home not so chill
Absurdist Pump.enjoyable-created meme coin Chill Home went on a rampage throughout social media, cussing out all the greatest founders and influencers within the house in October—which someway managed to pump the token.
The X account tagged Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko, outstanding Solana builder Mert Mumtaz, in addition to Coinbase government and Base community head Jesse Pollak, simply to say “fuck you” and mock their initiatives.
Biting the hand that made the pumping enjoyable attainable, Chill Home even known as Pump.enjoyable co-founder Alon Cohen a "cuck." Naturally, some took the bait, together with Pollak, who sparred with the account—whereas others, together with Buterin, ignored the troll.
5. The Jack Off 500
Two school college students offered “samples” of their sperm, which have been then raced in opposition to one another in what is without doubt one of the most viral and disgusting moments of the yr. It virtually goes with out saying that folks may gamble on the race through a crypto sportsbook.
Clearly not bizarre sufficient, the occasion was so successful {that a} second Sperm Racing occasion was sponsored by main blockchain Solana, with prime livestream influencer iShowSpeed in attendance.
However was the spunk junk? It seems that the race that was broadcast was really a dramatic computer-generated visualization, not the precise hundreds. Which, come to consider it, was in all probability for the perfect.
6. Dumpster diving for {dollars}
James Howells took one of many greatest losses of the yr when his native Welsh council rejected his bid to purchase a landfill for $3 million in the beginning of the yr. Why did he wish to take the dump? Properly, 12 years in the past, his then-girlfriend, now very a lot his ex-girlfriend, threw away his laborious drive containing a crypto pockets with 8,000 Bitcoin in it—value over $774 million on the time of the council’s rejection.
In April, Los Angeles-based manufacturing firm Lebul purchased unique rights to inform his story through a documentary. And because the summer time got here to an finish, Howells give up his decade-long pursuit of recovering the laborious drive.
Now he’s attempting to launch a Bitcoin layer-2 community that will be backed by his authorized possession of the funds, regardless of not accessing them. Is it loopy sufficient to work? Something is feasible in crypto.
7. Getting Buzz and influencing individuals
Just a little-known X person often known as Buzzlamic Jihad helped pump the value of Aptos in February, after months of spamming Aptos-related memes. His catchphrases “Aptos trying good right here,” “movement not priced in but,” and “sidelined?” rapidly grew to become main crypto memes this yr.
Because the influencer became a mascot for the community, Aptos determined to deliver him onboard as an official advisor.
It seems that Buzz was at all times greater than only a shitposter. He instructed Decrypt that he had a development advertising and marketing enterprise, specializing in Fb promoting, and claimed to have made thousands and thousands within the enterprise. The cherry on prime is that his mentors throughout this era have been none aside from Chase Herro and Zak Folkman, who went on to co-found the Trump-backed World Liberty Monetary.
8. You can also create a treasury
Amid the digital asset treasury pattern—or bubble, relying on who you ask—a lingerie blended preventing league created its personal crypto treasury. It began with $2.23 million value of Bitcoin; later roughly $65,000 value of Dogecoin was added to the coffers.
“Is it leaping on a pattern a bit bit? After all,” Shaun Donnelly, founder and CEO of Lingerie Combating Championships, instructed Decrypt, including that “we have to get within the sport now whereas we nonetheless can, as a result of if a few of the projections come true, there could be a degree the place you simply can't get into the market anymore.”
9. Lone Star cops lasso a Bitcoin ATM
Texas regulation enforcement used energy instruments to crack open a Bitcoin ATM to get well $32,000 after an area household mentioned they have been scammed out of funds. Yeah, you learn that proper: The household was tricked into paying some hackers $32K, however as a substitute of attempting to determine who the precise thieves have been, the cops smashed open a BTC ATM, grabbed the funds, and repaid the victims.
Bitcoin Depot, the proprietor of the ATM, mentioned that the “rogue regulation enforcement officers” have been simply “creating one other sufferer” by damaging the corporate’s property and taking their cash. Weirdly, the lengthy arm of the regulation has been making related strikes in Arkansas, Iowa and elsewhere, apparently believing that by facilitating the transactions, Bitcoin Depot is liable. The courts, nonetheless, disagree.
10. Melania bolognia
Transfer over, Donald. To not be outdone by her husband, in January U.S. First Girl Melania Trump launched her personal meme coin. However in a twist, her enterprise spiraled right into a authorized and technical farce involving Argentine President Javier Milei, a class-action lawsuit, and a million-dollar "oopsie."
The drama started when Melania’s token was swept right into a huge fraud and racketeering lawsuit filed in April (and amended in October). Buyers claimed Meteora co-founder Benjamin Chow was secretly puppeteering a "constellation of rip-off tokens," utilizing high-profile figures like Melania and Milei as bait to lure in consumers.
Issues acquired weirder nonetheless in October. Simply days after the lawsuit accused Chow of operating a "pump-and-dump" scheme, his personal platform, Meteora, accidentally airdropped $1.2 million value of tokens on to the wallets on the coronary heart of the scandal.
11. BOOM headshot
Has crypto discovered its lesson to not play with fireworks? Apparently not.
Controversial British content material creator Sam Pepper fired a Roman candle-style firework right into a crowd through the Diwali competition in New Delhi, India. “HEADSHOT,” somebody screamed from behind the digital camera, as a younger lady was apparently hit immediately within the eye and was rushed to the hospital.
Pepper claimed to have despatched somebody with the sufferer to the hospital to pay for her hospital charges, though journey YouTuber Raj Chauhan claims the household hasn’t seen any of that cash.
12. Dogwifhat, however not wif Sphere
Common Solana meme coin Dogwifhat confirmed, retracted, after which implied that it was going to be marketed on the Las Vegas Sphere through social media, prompting the token to leap double digits in a single day. “Formally confirmed. Viva hat Vegas,” a now-deleted X publish learn, accompanied by a photograph of the mascot sporting the Sphere as a hat.
However after Decrypt wrote in regards to the publish, Sphere PR reached out to say that, really, there was no deal to promote Dogwifhat on the Sphere. Certainly, the venue's crew was “distressed” the meme coin was utilizing its title for “fraudulent functions.”
The Dogwifhat crew rapidly retreated from their place and refunded everybody who had helped elevate $700,000 for the hopeful promoting marketing campaign.
13. Yu gotta be kidding
Jeff Yu, the creator of an AI musician, faked his dying and created a supposedly posthumous legacy coin, or legacoin, accompanied by a prolonged weblog publish. The token soared to a $105 million market cap earlier than it crashed 87% in simply an hour.
Simply days later, Yu was discovered alive at his dad and mom' home.
