DOGE futures interest is rebounding as PUMP and CASHCAT also surge, but weak market breadth suggests a full meme coin cycle has yet to arrive.
Meme coin trading is showing signs of life again after months of fading activity.
Traders are rebuilding positions in large-cap meme coins like Dogecoin (DOGE), while Pump.fun's PUMP token has rallied on renewed social-media buzz, and Robinhood Chain has emerged as a new hub for meme coin trading.
Still, the broader market remains weak. Rising DOGE and Shiba Inu (SHIB) open interest has not yet translated into price gains. Activity on Pump.fun remains far below 2024 highs, and the total meme coin market cap is down nearly 20% over the past month, according to CoinMarketCap data.
The question is whether these isolated bursts of activity are the first signs of a broader meme coin resurgence or just another short-lived rotation.
“The rebound of sentiment in the crypto ‘trenches’ is real,” Will Owens, a Galaxy researcher, said in a July report. However, he added, that sentiment is “speculative, narrative-driven, and pointed at whatever’s moving fastest.”
Are meme coins gearing up for a rally? Source: CoinMarketCap
Dogecoin Traders Are Coming Back
Large-cap meme coins are attracting more speculative positioning, but prices have yet to break out.
On July 20, Dogecoin perpetual futures open interest climbed to 14.74 billion DOGE, up from 12.01 billion on June 11, according to CoinGlass data cited by FXStreet. Shiba Inu open interest also recovered to nearly 8 trillion SHIB after falling to roughly 5 trillion in late June.
The increased positioning has yet to translate into sustained price gains. DOGE was trading at around $0.069 on July 23, still below its 50-day exponential moving average.
For a broader meme coin rally to take hold, that growing speculative interest will eventually need to show up in prices.
“Bulls need to reclaim key resistance before any sustained recovery can begin,” Token Talk, a crypto market analyst, said in a July X post.
Dogecoin net open interest has been rising. Source: CoinMarketCap
Robinhood Chain Finds Its Meme Trade
One of the strongest bursts of meme coin speculation has emerged on Robinhood Chain.
Robinhood launched the blockchain's mainnet on July 1 with a focus on tokenized stocks and real-world assets. Instead, meme coins quickly became a major source of activity.
Cash Cat (CASHCAT) surged more than 2,000% over seven days through July 13. By July 21, Robinhood Chain was approaching $9 billion in cumulative DEX volume, with meme coins reportedly accounting for more than 80%, according to a FalconX report cited by Crypto.news.
CASHCAT and other Robinhood Chain tokens remain relatively new, making it unclear whether the surge signals lasting demand or an initial burst of speculation that will fade as the network matures.
“Attention is the most abundant and least durable asset in crypto,” Owens said.
Robinhood Chain has emerged as a meme coin venue. Source: CoinMarketCap
Read More: What Is Robinhood Chain, and How Does It Work?
PUMP Rallies as Pump.fun Slows
Pump.fun is sending another mixed signal for the meme coin market.
By mid-June, the seven-day average share of tokens graduating from the Solana launchpad had fallen to 0.26%, down 80% over three months. Daily revenue averaged about $800,000 in June, compared with $4.8 million six months earlier.
PUMP nevertheless jumped about 20% on July 20 following bullish social media commentary from crypto influencer Ansem.
The rally shows that speculative interest can still quickly return to meme-related tokens. But a PUMP breakout alone does not mean traders are returning to the thousands of new tokens launched through Pump.fun.
A broader recovery would require activity on the underlying platform to rebound as well, including trading, revenue, and successful token launches.
Ansem is optimistic. He said he believes “SOL will dominate retail activity again this cycle and Pump.fun will be most likely beneficiary of this activity if that happens.”
Pump.fun logged a minor rally in July. Source: CoinMarketCap
The Broader Market Still Needs To Follow
The broader crypto market has yet to confirm a sustained return of risk appetite.
On July 20, crypto futures volume jumped 81% to $127 billion, while aggregate open interest remained flat at $111 billion, suggesting more trading without significant new positioning.
For a genuine meme cycle to emerge, that activity will need to translate into broader and more sustained price gains. Until then, the meme trade is heating up, but the wider boom has yet to arrive.
“Memecoin rallies remain possible but historically harder to sustain […] than in past cycles,” Santiment analysts wrote in July.
Read More: Here's Why Altseason Keeps Getting Delayed as Bitcoin Outperforms
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