No topic was off limits at the Paris Blockchain Week 2025, including recent memecoin launches and rug pulls. Messari CEO Eric Turner thinks memecoins are fun. “I really like the concept. Early on, building a community and everything made a lot of sense to me.”

“But when you think about it in terms of gambling, I feel we got to the point where yes, it was gambling, but the dice were rigged,” he added. “And you look at a lot of memecoin launches, and they were just, rigged against people buying them in the first place.”

Since the market has seen “that wash out,” Turner thinks it’s very healthy for “where we are as an industry.” Referring to a certain memecoin launch and the subsequent rug pull, he said he thinks “it will get us back to the point where we are building meaningful things.”

“And I think everything we do in this industry is a lesson learned,” he added. “You see how people are going to interact with the technology, see the demand just to launch new assets, the platforms that you can do it on. And I think, if anything, that experience was great.”

There are still going to be quality assets in that sector, but again, I think the wash out that we’ve seen over the past, let’s call it three months or so, has been good.

Explore: Messari CEO Eric Turner Thinks Q2 May Be Muted, But Q3 And Q4 Will Be Exciting!

“But if the market wants it, then there is probably a right for it to exist”

Meanwhile, Thomas Eichenberger, CSO and deputy Group CEO of Sygnum Bank said, “I personally believe there are more meaningful things we can do with this technology than issue meme coins. But if the market wants it, then there is probably a right for it to exist.”

“Then hopefully there is more to it than pure speculation and gambling,” he continued, “because there are users involved that may not be aware of the potential risks they enter into in case they buy and trade meme coins. But yes, they are a phenomenon of our industry at this point in time, so it’s going to be exciting to see where it takes us.”

DISCOVER: 20+ Next Crypto to Explode in 2025 

“Classic crypto, we got really ahead of ourselves in the hype cycle there,” said Messari CEO, referring to the hype around AI

We’ve spent the past year and a half building an infrastructure for AI agents to leverage cryptos leading market intelligence platform

Excited to bring our insights to @CoinbaseDev and power the next generation of builders https://t.co/NyHXAuLqBE

— Eric Turner (@ericturnr) April 9, 2025

Turner said, “For us at Messari, AI has really changed the way that we work on a day-to-day basis.

Talking about the increasing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), especially at Messari, Turner said, “It is so deeply ingrained in everything that we do and in our products as well. We have an AI co-pilot, we’ve done some really interesting things with AI.”

“I think when I look at where AI and crypto overlap today, I’ve been somewhat underwhelmed,” said Turner. “There are really interesting things where AI infrastructure can be done better. I’m still waiting to see something that really blows my mind live in action.”

Furthermore, Messari CEO said “we work in a space where Messari provides research, data, information. And when we think about what’s going to move things forward on the regulatory side – it’s transparency and it’s consumer education.”

Great day of meetings in DC

I’m incredibly excited about what Q3/Q4 hold for the industry pic.twitter.com/VhXYDsjlSJ

— Eric Turner (@ericturnr) April 10, 2025

DISCOVER: Best New Cryptocurrencies to Invest in 2025

“A lot of Memecoin Launches Were Rigged Against People,” Says Messari CEO Eric Turner

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure

Within an hour, a meme coin on the Solana blockchain, LIBRA, ballooned to a market value of $1.16 billion before quickly disintegrating. According to sources, early buyers of the LIBRA token profited millions of dollars while regular investors ended up scratching their heads with nothing.

The Rise And Fall Of LIBRA

Shortly after its launch, LIBRA reportedly saw an unprecedented rise in value. But the excitement quickly turned to misery. Approximately 75,000 traders lost their first deposits when the token fell more than 90% in value. The damage, analysts said, were more than $280 million.

Market watchers were puzzled by the abrupt shift. Many questioned how such a rapid boom could end in disaster so quickly. It didn’t take long before allegations of insider activity started surfacing.

Early Birds Made Millions

Recent reports indicate that specific individuals had access to LIBRA tokens prior to the public launch. Allegedly, these insiders acquired substantial quantities at reduced prices and subsequently disposed of them at the market’s peak. Prior to the collapse, some enjoyed profits of up to $110 million.

Following the launch of tokens such as $MELANIA and $LIBRA, focus has turned to a need for more transparent and equitable token launch mechanisms in the crypto market.

This edition of our institutional report ‘A Presidential Guide To Token Launches’ examines:

The history of… pic.twitter.com/5Liroimyuz

— DWF Labs (@DWFLabs) March 14, 2025

Insider Links

One of the names mentioned in reports is Kelsier Ventures. The firm is suspected of having links to the pre-launch accumulation of LIBRA tokens. If true, this raises serious concerns about transparency and fairness in token launches.

Investigating the situation, DWF Labs found that certain wallets connected with insiders disposed of significant amounts of LIBRA tokens at the point of highest pricing.

When DWF Labs looked into the case, they found that funds linked to insiders dumped a lot of LIBRA tokens just as the prices were reaching their highest point.

The findings show that people who bought before the launch had a big advantage, since early sales gave them the chance to make millions before the crash. This has made people worry that the rise and fall of the token wasn’t natural, but rather the result of moves planned by a small group of traders.

Public Endorsement And Political Links

The scandal surrounding LIBRA did not remain restricted to the crypto community. It rapidly garnered attention in the political and financial sectors as a result of its affiliation with prominent figures.

Argentine President Javier Milei had explicitly supported the project. The situation has since sparked fears regarding the potential political involvement in financial activities related to crypto.

Stringent Safety Nets Required

DWF Labs has emphasized the necessity of more stringent safeguards, advocating for improved investor protections and more transparent regulations regarding token distributions to prevent early purchasers from obtaining unfair advantages.

Their analysis has strengthened the argument that more stringent regulations are necessary to prevent future market manipulations of a similar nature.

Featured image from Gemini Imagen, chart from TradingView

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