Daily tips paid to Jito validators on Solana have surged over the past week, averaging 20,900 SOL — or roughly $3.63 million — per day. That’s a 57% increase from the prior four-week average of 13,700 SOL ($2.06 million), reflecting heightened on-chain activity across the network.
Spikes in Jito validator tips often signal increased demand for blockspace, and this time is no exception. However, the surge hasn’t benefited all platforms equally. Despite the rise in Solana activity, meme token platform Pump.fun saw fees decline 27.5% week-over-week — from $18.2 million (May 5–10) to $13.2 million (May 12–17).
The shift appears tied to the rapid emergence of the Believe ecosystem, founded by tech entrepreneur Ben Pasternak. Believe offers a token launchpad where users can mint tokens by replying to X posts with “@launchcoin + TICKER.” Tokens begin on a bonding-curve pool and “graduate” to a Meteora AMM pool once their market cap exceeds $100,000. A 2% buy/sell tax is levied on each transaction, with fees split evenly between Believe and the token’s creator.
Unlike Pump.fun, which caters primarily to memecoins, Believe presents itself as a platform for startup and utility-focused launches — though many of its tokens lack underlying products. Its documentation explicitly states that tokens “must never represent equity,” raising questions about long-term sustainability and value.
Still, interest has been explosive. Believe’s native token, $LAUNCHCOIN (formerly $PASTERNAK), jumped from a $12 million market cap to $344 million between May 12 and May 15 — a 2,766% gain in four days. Other ecosystem tokens hit eight-figure valuations, including $GOONC and $STARTUP, which peaked at $70 million and $42 million despite having no associated projects.
Most of these tokens have since dropped more than 70%, and $LAUNCHCOIN is down over 40% from its recent high. But as seen with previous skepticism around on-chain AI tokens that later surged to multi-billion-dollar valuations, the Believe ecosystem remains one to watch — especially if its terms evolve to permit equity or true utility representation.
This is an excerpt from The Block’s Data & Insights newsletter. Dig into the numbers making up the industry’s most thought-provoking trends.
© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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