Pump.fun modifies its rewards to favor memecoin traders

They were said to be moribund. Swallowed by the crisis shaking the crypto industry. Memecoins smelled burnt. Yet, Pump.fun just pulled out the big guns. The Solana platform changes the rules of the game. Gone are the days of creators pocketing fees without working: room for traders. A 180-degree turn that makes the crypto-sphere vibrate. Explanations.

The Pump.fun revolution: end of privileges for ghost creators

Pump.fun opened its eyes after the launch of Pump Fund. Out of its 58.7 million wallets, a tiny fraction really benefited from the system. The numbers hit like a guillotine: 4.76 million earned between 1,000 and 10,000 dollars. Fewer than 13,700 became millionaires. Meanwhile, ghost creators stacked fees without bringing anything. The platform therefore decided to react.

“Not all tokens deserve Creator Fees“, Pump.fun stated on X. “However, many tokens succeed without a team or project leader, disproportionately rewarding deployers who do not deserve these fees.”

Specifically, creators must now choose before launch. Either they keep the 0.3% fees, or they fully return them to traders. An irrevocable decision that lets the market decide.

Memecoins in crisis: the collapse of fees that changed everything

This shift is not a whim. It is a matter of pure survival. In January 2025, Pump.fun collected 148.1 million dollars in fees. An absolute record in memecoin history. In January 2026, only 31.8 million remained. The drop is dizzying: minus 75.6% in one year. February follows the same worrying slope. The urgency is there, raw, relentless.

CEO Alon admitted in January: the old system encouraged low-risk tokens, not true trading. It had to change or die. So Pump.fun changes strategy. And tries to restart the engine with Cashback Coins. The first effects are already visible. PUMP’s spot volume jumped 56% in 24 hours.

110 million dollars moved through the platform. Traders are coming back to sniff out the good deal. But the path remains strewn with obstacles.

Cashback Coins: the bold bet dividing the crypto community

One big unknown remains: will it really work? The community wonders. Coos, a well-known X user, asks the uncomfortable question:

Won’t this reduce incentives for devs? Devs will have fewer reasons to push the coins over time, since the most lucrative moment is when the coins are still on pf. Let’s hope not to see more quick farms than we already have.

With fewer fees at stake, will creators still launch memecoins? Or will we see an explosion of express farms to grab cashback? The PUMP token sends mixed signals. At 0.002179 dollar, it compresses under a downtrend line. Volumes pick up again, but RSI remains below 50. Buyers have not regained control. The bet is on. Verdict in the coming weeks.

The state of Pump.fun in numbers

• 58.7 million: number of wallets that interacted with the platform;
• Only 13,700 reached millionaire status on Pump.fun;
• -75.6%: the dizzying drop in fees between 2025 and 2026;
• 0.002179 $: the price of the PUMP token at the time of writing;
• 56%: the increase in spot volume in 24h after the Cashback Coins announcement.

As for the suspicions of cash out on Kraken that stirred the community, answers have already been provided by the team. Pump.fun’s future is at stake in this troubled period. Its new model appeals to traders but angers some creators. Will it find the magic balance? The survival of memecoins may depend on it. The crypto industry holds its breath.