Crypto analysts are abuzz amid individual and joint attempts to dissect the impact of the Solana-based token-launching platform, Pump.fun, on the altcoin market.

Analysts and traders are divided over whether the platform has single-handedly derailed the much-anticipated altcoin season by diverting liquidity away from traditional crypto assets.

Analysts Make A Case Against Pump.fun

Miles Deutscher pointed to the Solana-based token generator as a major reason behind the delayed altcoin season. The renowned crypto analyst observes that the current market dynamic differs from previous cycles, where speculative capital flowed into altcoins with solid liquidity.

“The launch of Pump Fun is directly correlated to the destruction of the altcoin market vs. BTC. The reason we’ve seen no major ‘alt season’ across majors is because the speculative capital that would’ve once poured into top 200 assets instead flooded into on-chain low caps,” Deutscher articulated.

Instead, retail investors have been lured into illiquid on-chain meme coins, many of which have retraced 70-80% from their peaks. This aligns with a recent survey, which established that more than 60% of Pump.fun traders have lost money.

The shift led to significant losses for latecomers, exacerbating bearish sentiment in the market and postponing the colloquial altcoin season.

Historically, altcoin seasons follow Bitcoin’s price surges as capital rotates to projects with strong fundamentals. Ideally, the altcoin season was due a few months after Bitcoin’s then all-time high of $73,000 in January 2024. This was following the approval of BTC ETFs (exchange-traded funds) in the US.

Master of Crypto, a veteran trader, highlighted the staggering scale of Pump.fun’s impact. He notes that since April 2024, over 5.1 million tokens have been launched on the platform. This has generated $471 million in revenue.

As traders attempt to profit by chasing the platform’s products, this has created a fragmented market in which no single altcoin can gain traction.

Pump.fun As A Liquidity Blackhole

Pump.fun launched in April 2024, coinciding with the altcoin season, which contravened expected patterns. According to analysts, its meme coin mania progressively dominated speculative interest, causing traditional altcoins to struggle to attract liquidity.

“Pump Fun launched in April 2024 exactly when this Altcoin run deviated from past cycles,” EllioTrades stated.

Pump.fun, which allows users to launch tokens instantly with minimal effort, has surged in popularity. The platform began 2025 with a record $14 million in daily revenue. Nevertheless, critics argue that this success has been a liquidity black hole. Web3 researcher Mercek called the platform an insider-engineered liquidity heist.

“Stealing liquidity from the altcoin market? Pump.fun know how to do it. Meme mania or retail gambling are terms used just to avoid seeing the hard truth…Pump fun was never about decentralization or fun… but an insider-engineered liquidity heist,” the trader explained.

In their opinion, since its inception, Pump.fun has processed over $4.16 billion in transactions. It has also funneled the proceeds into centralized exchanges (CEXs), further draining the altcoin ecosystem.

Counterargument To Shifting Speculative Capital

Not everyone is convinced that Pump.fun is to blame for the sluggish altcoin market. Blockchain researcher Rasrm questioned the narrative. He argues that the market cap of Pump.fun tokens are insufficient to significantly affect broader altcoin liquidity.

“Total pumpfun coin MC is not nearly high enough to have affected this, surely?” he posted.

Others have emphasized that speculative capital does not always stay within the ecosystem. This means that not every winning trade repositions itself on another trade. It could exit the ecosystem entirely.

It appears establishing how much went into the Pump.fun’s ecosystem would be a more accurate metric.

Regardless of the cause for the delayed altcoin season, Pump.fun has fundamentally altered how capital moves in the crypto market. With Solana founders reportedly disliking the platform, according to a recent survey, Pump.fun’s long-term viability remains uncertain.

Meanwhile, Deutscher also associates Pump.fun’s rise to the stringent crypto regulations that have made fair project launches increasingly difficult. The US SEC’s (Securities and Exchange Commission) crackdown on CEXs and token offerings has forced market participants to explore decentralized alternatives.

This regulatory playing field has created an environment where meme tokens and gambling-style speculation thrive, turning crypto into a casino. Some see this as detrimental to the industry’s long-term growth. Meanwhile, others argue it serves as a powerful onboarding tool for new users.

Whales bought heavily during the recent market downturn, signaling renewed confidence in WLD, VIRTUAL, and ONDO. WLD ended 2024 with an 8% decline, but whale accumulation has pushed large holder addresses to all-time highs.

VIRTUAL, one of the hardest-hit AI tokens with a 71% drop, is now seeing a resurgence in whale buying, hinting at a potential recovery. Meanwhile, ONDO remains strong, up 5% in the last week, with steady accumulation from large investors reinforcing its position as a leading Real-World Assets (RWA) project.

Worldcoin (WLD)

Worldcoin ended 2024 with a disappointing 8% decline, frustrating many investors. This underperformance was even more noticeable as crypto AI agents gained traction late in the year, attracting users and capital.

Despite this, whales bought heavily during the recent market downturn, indicating renewed confidence in WLD’s long-term potential.

Since January 31, the number of whales holding between 10,000 and 100,000 WLD, as well as those holding between 100,000 and 1,000,000 WLD, has surged to new all-time highs.

This aggressive accumulation suggests that large investors see value at current levels, despite WLD and the overall artificial intelligence market struggles. If whale buying continues, it could provide much-needed support for a potential recovery in the coming weeks.

Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL)

VIRTUAL was one of the hardest-hit AI tokens in the market, plunging 71% between January 3 and February 3.

This steep decline made it one of the biggest losers among top artificial intelligence cryptos, reflecting the broader sell-off in speculative sectors. Despite this, recent data suggests that whale activity could be signaling a potential shift in sentiment.

The number of whales holding between 10,000 and 100,000 VIRTUAL had stabilized after dropping from 841 on January 25 to 825 on January 27.

However, following the latest market crash, accumulation has resumed, with whale addresses rising from 827 on February 1 to 841 now.

Ondo (ONDO)

ONDO has established itself as one of the leading Real-World Assets (RWA) projects, surging 453% in 2024. Even amid the broader crypto market correction, ONDO has remained resilient, posting a 5% gain over the last seven days, as RWA is one of the most relevant crypto narratives for the next weeks.

The number of addresses holding at least 1,000,000 ONDO has been steadily increasing since January 12, rising from 180 to 186 between January 31 and February 3.

This accumulation, especially after the recent market downturn, suggests that large holders remain confident in ONDO’s long-term potential. Despite market volatility, the steady growth in whale addresses indicates that institutional and high-net-worth investors are still positioning themselves in ONDO.

A month into 2025, Ethereum faces growing uncertainty despite its established dominance in the smart contract space. While ETH registered notable gains in 2024, it lagged behind major competitors like Solana, XRP, and SUI, raising concerns about its ability to maintain market leadership.

The Ethereum Foundation also had a challenging year, dealing with transparency issues, leadership shifts, and increasing skepticism from the community. With experts divided on Ethereum’s future, the question remains: Does it still offer strong investment potential, or are alternative ecosystems becoming more attractive?

Ethereum is Lagging Behind Major Competitors

In 2024, Ethereum ended the year with a 63% gain, but this was far below its major competitors. Bitcoin rose 123%, BNB climbed 134%, and Solana surged 138%.

Smaller players like Hedera (300%), XRP (335%), and SUI (555%) outperformed significantly, suggesting that capital flowed into alternative ecosystems with higher returns.

Ethereum and Hedera were also the only assets in this group that failed to reach a new all-time high. Ethereum’s peak in 2024 barely exceeded $4,000, still well below its 2021 record of $4,864.

When analyzing fees generated in the last 30 days, Ethereum is on the verge of leaving the top 10, with $133 million in fees, just ahead of Pumpfun ($123 million).

Notably, five of the top 10 are Solana-based, including Jito, Raydium, Meteora, and Pump, which, along with Solana itself, have all generated more fees than ETH.

Ethereum Foundation Suffered a Lot of Criticism Last Year

Last year was tough for the Ethereum Foundation, facing heavy criticism on multiple fronts. Issues began when key members took advisory roles at EigenLayer, one of Ethereum’s most hyped projects. The foundation was also called out for a lack of transparency after a $100 million transfer to Kraken.

Further controversy arose when reports suggested that the foundation was selling ETH every 11 days, prompting Vitalik to defend its neutrality and reject staking ETH.

“We are indeed currently in the process of large changes to EF leadership structure, which has been ongoing for close to a year. Some of this has already been executed on and made public, and some is still in progress,” Buterin posted on X (formerly Twitter) back in January.

Recently, Vitalik hinted that the foundation might reconsider ETH staking to cover expenses. On January 18, he announced “large changes” to the leadership structure, aiming for stronger technical expertise and better communication with developers, users, and Layer 2 projects. Despite this, the community remains skeptical, with ETH down 17.5% since his statement.

With ongoing leadership changes, financial concerns, and transparency issues, some in the community see the Ethereum Foundation as directionless.

Confidence in its long-term vision appears shaky, and uncertainty around Ethereum’s next development phases could be weighing on sentiment.

Experts Show Mixed Sentiment About the Future of Ethereum

On X, opinions on Ethereum are divided. Max Resnick, Lead Economist at Anza, suggests Uniswap may have missed an opportunity by not launching on Solana.

He highlights that Raydium, a Solana-exclusive DEX, is now generating more volume and fees than Uniswap, despite Uniswap operating across multiple chains.

“Probably the best advice you could’ve given uniswap 6-12 months ago would have been to launch on Solana as soon as possible. Influential people, some of whom I think are very smart and respect told them to launch the 1000th Ethereum L2. This is the result,” Resnick wrote.

Anton Bukov, co-founder of 1Inch, takes a different stance, praising Ethereum and its Layer 2 solutions for their simplicity and developer-friendly environment.

“Despite market uncertainty about leading smart contract platforms, I am pretty sure it’s still obviously the most popular and simple platform for developers – Ethereum and its L2s,” Bukov wrote.

Crypto investor Ted Pillows remains optimistic, pointing to potential catalysts for Ethereum, such as a Trump administration and the possibility of an Ethereum Staking ETF.

On the other hand, Crypto Data expert Kofi argues that the Ethereum Foundation should not be viewed as the face of Ethereum, reinforcing the idea that the network’s strength lies in its decentralized nature.

The EF does a lot of important work. People don’t realise it because the EF: – Don’t aggressively promote their work – Allow the teams they support to take full credit for wins This is intentional. The EF is not meant to be the face of Ethereum. The EF is supposed to steward the infinite garden, supporting an increasingly diverse network of contributors from the background. Until, one day, it’s no longer needed,” wrote Kofi.

To Sum It Up: Is ETH Worth Investing?

Ethereum’s struggles in 2024 signal a troubling trend for its future as competitors like Solana, XRP, and SUI continue to capture market share with higher returns, lower fees, and better scalability.

The Ethereum Foundation’s ongoing transparency issues, leadership turmoil, and lack of clear direction only add to the uncertainty, making it less attractive for investors seeking stability.

With Solana-based applications now outpacing Ethereum in fee generation and innovation shifting elsewhere, Ethereum’s relevance as the leading smart contract platform is no longer guaranteed.

Unless it addresses these challenges quickly, ETH may no longer be the best investment choice in 2025.