BTC and ETH Surge: What Their Growth Means for the Next Wave of Meme Coins

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May 22, 2025
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5 min read

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As Bitcoin and Ethereum retreat from centralised exchanges, investors are wondering what will happen next. With meme coin markets heating up and supply-side pressures easing, the crypto landscape may be preparing for its next big rotation.

Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are rapidly disappearing from centralised exchanges. A new analysis from Santiment shows that both assets have reached their lowest exchange supply levels in years, which suggests investor confidence and long-term holding behaviour are strengthening. At the same time, the market is seeing renewed interest in high-risk, high-reward plays, particularly in the form of new meme coins, where utility and virality collide.

Shrinking BTC and ETH Supply Reflects Long-Term Confidence

According to Santiment, just 7.1% of all BTC is now held on exchanges—the lowest figure since November 2018. Ethereum shows a similar pattern: less than 4.9% of the ETH supply is currently on exchanges, marking its lowest point in over a decade.

This sharp decline in available trading supply has vast implications. Over the last five years, BTC’s exchange reserves have dropped by 1.7 million coins, while ETH reserves have declined by 15.3 million. A shrinking exchange supply often means a reduction in immediate selling pressure. Instead of being held in active trading accounts, these assets migrate to cold storage, indicating investor intent to have for the long term.

That shift is being supported by bullish sentiment across the board. Spot BTC ETF markets in the US have posted eight days of inflows in the past ten trading sessions. Ethereum products are seeing similar trends. Fund inflow reports from CoinShares support the idea that digital asset investment products, especially those tied to BTC and ETH, are experiencing a consistent and growing wave of institutional demand.

Demand and Supply Dynamics Suggest Market Rotation Ahead

The combined effect of reduced exchange supply and increasing investment demand is already felt. BTC recently traded above $105,000, while ETH hovered around $2,527. Both assets have experienced modest price growth over the past 24 hours. However, it’s not just the majors that are benefiting. Altcoins and meme coins in particular are beginning to see renewed attention from traders looking for outsized gains as the market cycle matures.

That’s where the supply shift becomes especially relevant. As BTC and ETH become harder to access quickly due to their exchange scarcity, some investors focus on new meme coins and other high-growth digital assets.

The logic is simple: if blue-chip cryptos are being held for the long term, then the short-term trading capital must find a new home and meme coins are absorbing some of that liquidity.

Mind of Pepe: A Meme Coin Built for the Post-BTC Rally Environment

One project drawing significant attention is Mind of Pepe ($MIND), an AI-powered meme coin agent that blends internet culture with advanced crypto-native tooling. At the time of writing, $MIND is priced at just $0.0037515 and has raised over $9.7 million in its presale – a clear indicator that investor appetite for new meme coins is alive and well.

What sets $MIND apart from earlier meme coin cycles is its self-evolving AI agent. Rather than simply riding the popularity of meme culture, the Mind of Pepe agent actively participates in the crypto space. It runs its own X account, consumes sentiment data, and identifies trends before they go viral. That gives $MIND holders exclusive insights via a gated token system.

It’s a setup that resonates in the current market. With BTC and ETH moving into long-term cold storage, and investors looking for new sources of volatility and opportunity, meme coins like $MIND offer a new form of engagement – one that’s both interactive and potentially lucrative.

Exclusive Utility and Market Participation

Unlike many speculative tokens, $MIND integrates deeper into the ecosystem. Its AI agent interacts with decentralised applications (dApps), operates its own wallet, and even launches new tokens directly on-chain. This level of integration means it can offer presale access and alpha to community members before wider dissemination—effectively putting holders at the front of the queue for new opportunities.

The AI trading agent isn’t just a novelty. It’s designed to evolve. That means learning from the market, adjusting strategies, and adapting to new meme formats and trading patterns in real time. This dynamic capability makes $MIND especially relevant now, as investors seek nimble plays that can keep up with and potentially influence broader crypto sentiment.

Meme Coins in a Maturing Market

The shrinking BTC and ETH supply marks a shift in market structure. In previous cycles, speculative energy was often diffused across altcoins without clear thematic drivers, but this cycle differs. Institutional capital drives up BTC and ETH's floor price, while retail attention flows toward tokens that reflect cultural relevance and technical innovation. Meme coins like Mind of Pepe sit at the intersection of those forces.

With nine days left in its presale, $MIND is well-positioned to take advantage of the scarcity narrative surrounding BTC and ETH and the rising interest in AI crypto projects. Its appeal lies not only in price speculation but also in its functional AI interface, which continues to evolve alongside the ecosystem it serves.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT MIND OF PEPE AS INTEREST IN AI CRYPTO RISES

The growing market capitalisation of the AI token sector, alongside the ongoing meme coin boom, makes Mind of Pepe a compelling case study of how new meme coins adapt to today’s market demands.

New Meme Coins Thrive in Post-BTC Scarcity Cycle

The drying up of BTC and ETH on centralised exchanges is a strong signal of growing investor confidence and a long-term outlook across significant portfolios. Still, this scarcity redirects liquidity into the meme coin space for traders and retail participants seeking near-term action.

Projects like Mind of Pepe are stepping into that vacuum, offering community-driven engagement, AI-enhanced features, and a roadmap beyond mere hype. As BTC and ETH continue to move off exchanges and into cold storage, meme coins are increasingly becoming the default arena for high-volatility trading and speculation.

Whether this rotation sustains or fades will depend on market sentiment, but for now, new meme coins like $MIND are catching the momentum and in a cycle where supply is tight and demand is rising, that might be precisely what the market needs.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Always do your research (DYOR) before investing in cryptocurrencies.

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By Techpoint Africa
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