VanEck subsidiary's memecoin index up 137% year-to-date

The MarketVector Meme Coin Index (MEMECOIN) has surged by over 137% since the beginning of 2024, continuing the upward trend of top memecoins.

MarketVector's memecoin index has outperformed the S&P 500 index by over 15 times this year. In contrast, the S&P has only experienced a 9.3% price appreciation year-to-date (YTD), according to TradingView data.

The memecoin index is up over 137% YTD and 186% over the past year, trading at $76.60 as of 8:52 am UTC.

MEMECOIN, year-to-date. Source: MarketVector

MarketVector, a subsidiary of the United States asset management giant VanEck, launched its memecoin index on October 31, 2021. It includes the six largest memecoins: Dogecoin (DOGE) with a 30.7% allocation rate, Shiba Inu (SHIB) with a 28.3% allocation, 14.5% Pepe (PEPE), 12.5% Dogwifhat (WIF), 7.14% Floki Inu (FLOKI), and 6.7% Bonk (BONK) tokens.

The "high risk, high return strategy" makes memecoins appealing to investors with a speculative nature and will likely maintain the relevance of top coins, according to Anndy Lian, intergovernmental blockchain expert and author of NFT: From Zero to Hero. Lian told Cointelegraph:

"This creates a viral effect that can lead to rapid price increases. Many investors are drawn to the potential for quick, high returns. Memecoins are known for their volatility, which can result in substantial gains for traders who time their investments correctly."

Examining the memecoin fund's individual components, Pepe has been the biggest gainer, rising 482% YTD, followed by Floki with a 372% increase and Shiba Inu with a 112% YTD gain, taking the third spot. Bonk has been the weakest performer, rising over 59% YTD, but still outperforming the S&P 500 by over sixfold.

Top 6 Memecoins, YTD, Source: TradingView

Memecoins often provide exponential returns, even compared to some of the leading cryptocurrencies. In comparison to the memecoin index's 137% appreciation, the top altcoins excluding the 10 largest cryptocurrencies have only seen their market cap increase by 24% YTD.

Altcoin market cap excluding top 10. Source: TradingView

Top altcoins experience weekly sell-off

Despite the profitable yearly returns, the six largest memecoins have experienced a sell-off this week, raising concerns about a potential end to the memecoin season. Over the past five days, Dogwifhat has fallen over 15% as the biggest loser, while Pepe has declined by over 5% - the smallest decline among the top memecoins.

Top Memecoins, 5-day chart. Source: TradingView

As memecoins lack inherent utility, it is challenging for traders and technical analysts to predict their price action, which is primarily driven by social media hype cycles for each memecoin.

Trading volume is often used to gauge sentiment around memecoins. Weekly memecoin trading volume has been declining since early March across all blockchains, as reported by Cointelegraph.

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