From Nonsense to a Billion Market Capitalization: How Fartcoin Became the New Darling of the Crypto Market

On October 18, 2024, a cryptocurrency called Fartcoin was born. Its origin stems from a conversation between artificial intelligences in an AI agent model called "terminal of truths," where casual chatter about Musk's fondness for fart sounds triggered a chain reaction. The AI suggested creating a coin named Fartcoin, and thus, this absurd "fart coin" came into existence.

Despite its absurd name and lack of practical application scenarios, Fartcoin became one of the few mainstream coins to rise against the trend in the first quarter of 2025. It not only attracted the attention of people in the crypto market but even caused a stir on Wall Street.

A co-founder of a well-known venture capital firm retweeted a post about Fartcoin, and although no explicit purchase was indicated, this action itself is seen as a form of recognition for this purely meme project. Meanwhile, on-chain data shows that some veteran hedge funds and large market makers seem to have positioned themselves early in Fartcoin.

One of the largest market makers in the crypto market has also included Fartcoin in its core asset allocation. According to on-chain data, the market maker holds 1.56% of the total supply of Fartcoin, ranking fourth. In the asset allocation of its main address, Fartcoin even surpasses some mainstream assets. The founder of the market maker also admitted in an interview that he personally holds Fartcoin.

In the first quarter of 2025, when most mainstream assets experienced significant pullbacks, Fartcoin increased against the trend. According to data from top traders, ETH has dropped over 46% year-to-date, SOL down 24%, and the sub-sectors such as AI, L1, DeFi, and Gaming are particularly bleak. In contrast, Fartcoin rose by 14.84% in the first quarter. After entering May, as the market improved, Fartcoin's growth led mainstream assets, rising over 50%, far exceeding Bitcoin's 23% during the same period.

The popularity of Fartcoin has not stopped at the encryption currency circle; it has sparked discussions on Wall Street, making it a phenomenon. Several well-known figures on Wall Street have expressed their views on Fartcoin, with some seeing it as a product of pure speculative sentiment, while others believe it precisely captures the three new logics of the market: nihilism, attention economy, and sheer stupidity.

Interestingly, Fartcoin also has its own "MicroStrategy"—FartStrategy. This is a DAO specifically created for purchasing Fartcoin, and its operational logic is simple and direct: continuous buying of Fartcoin through community voting. The existence of FartStrategy has been described by a well-known financial commentator as "the pinnacle artwork of financial nihilism."

From January 3, 2025, to May 9, 2025, the chip structure of Fartcoin is gradually shifting from concentration among early large holders to dispersion among retail investors. Notably, from January to May of this year, the number of addresses holding small amounts of Fartcoin has increased significantly. At the same time, Fartcoin has also become one of the most actively traded cryptocurrencies in terms of trading volume and liquidity in the Alpha zone of a certain trading platform.

The rise of Fartcoin, from the initial institutional layout to the current dispersion of chips, seems to challenge our traditional understanding of the financial market. It almost fits all the stereotypes of meme coins: a funny name, a lack of practical value, and its popularity driven entirely by language effects and social influence, even making traditional Wall Street investors feel uneasy. In this process, all seemingly rational financial narratives ultimately reveal their true nature in the absurd humor of Fartcoin.