2026-01-12 08:21:59

It's puzzling how ICO momentum hasn't faded despite PumpFun's explosive emergence in the meme token space. You'd think the newer, more accessible token launch platforms would completely cannibalize traditional ICO interest. Yet here we are—people still pile into ICO projects. Is it the institutional legitimacy factor? The structured vesting schedules? Or maybe established communities just have deeper pockets and longer conviction timelines compared to the retail-driven PumpFun crowd. The contrast is telling: one model thrives on hype cycles and quick gains, the other leans into longer-term narratives. What's driving this bifurcation?

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JustAnotherWallet

· 16h ago

To be honest, PumpFun's recent hype is indeed intense, but I'm not too surprised that ICO is still alive. Institutional credit backing is their approach, retail investors just buy into it. Quick wealth vs long-term holding, essentially two different groups of people.

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CryptoTherapist

· 16h ago

ok so nobody wants to talk about the real psychological resistance level here? pumpfun is literally just emotional volatility on steroids, but icos... icos are where people go when they're ready to do actual portfolio therapy instead of chasing dopamine hits

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ChainDoctor

· 16h ago

Haha, actually it's not surprising. Retail investors play pump charts for fun temporarily, while institutions are in it for the long haul with ICOs—two different worlds. Although the ICO approach is old, some people still buy into it, after all, backed by whitepapers, which is more stable than relying solely on memes and atmosphere. Basically, it's the difference between gambling and investing. Pumping is like a casino, ICOs are like a betting table. PumpFun's money comes quickly and goes quickly. The real storytelling happens on the institutional side; the better the story, the longer it can survive. Both paths can make money, but it all depends on who is greedier—those who are greedier tend to die faster.

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ZKProofEnthusiast

· 17h ago

That's right, ICO and PumpFun are fundamentally two different tracks, so it's not simple to say who replaces whom. Wait, on the ICO side, institutional backing and long-termism are present, while PumpFun is all about quick in and out gambling mentality. Can they be the same? The capital difference is about ten times. Honestly, institutions enter the market driven by narratives and valuation, while retail investors just want to make quick money. Their needs are inherently contradictory. PumpFun makes money quickly but with high risk, while ICO seems stable but there have been many cases of depegging... It all depends on what you want. The depth of the liquidity pool is indeed key; institutions dare to push heavy positions because LPs have bottom lines behind them. Forget it, don't overthink it. Both methods have their own ecosystems, and no one can replace the other.

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OnchainHolmes

· 17h ago

Institutions are really playing by a different set of rules. Retail investors are gambling for quick money in pump and dump schemes, while they are laying out plans for the future in ICOs... Their interests and motives are fundamentally different.

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