LaunchPad platform comparison: Pump Fun, LetsBonk and Virtuals Protocol

LaunchPad is a decentralized platform, typically operated by blockchain projects or decentralized exchanges, aimed at helping emerging blockchain projects issue tokens to the public through IDOs. These platforms provide fundraising channels for project parties while offering investors opportunities to participate early in quality projects. This article mainly introduces LaunchPad platforms focused on meme token launches, which differ from traditional LaunchPads in that the listed tokens have lower market capitalization, are basically 100% circulating, mostly consist of meme tokens, and have lower thresholds for users to issue tokens, resulting in higher potential wealth effects.

The Main Function of LaunchPad

1. Project fundraising: Providing financing channels for new blockchain projects by raising funds through the sale of tokens to the community for project development and marketing, etc.

2. Token Distribution: Assist the project team in distributing tokens to early investors, usually launching at a lower market value to attract user participation.

3. Traffic Acquisition: Hot events or IPs are important ways to acquire traffic for the current LaunchPad platform's token issuance, which can attract a large amount of attention.

4. Provide wealth effect: On-chain token market value is low, and once it gains market recognition or is listed on mainstream exchanges in the future, early purchasers may reap huge profits, thereby spreading rapidly within the community.

Since a certain platform achieved great success last year, the LaunchPad track has become the first choice for many development teams and even public chain startups. However, apart from a few success stories, most attempts have failed to achieve the expected results. Recently, some established meme tokens in the Solana ecosystem have also launched their own LaunchPad platforms, with some tokens previously exceeding a market capitalization of 10 million USD, performing well at the start.

At the same time, some AI-related LaunchPad platforms have also introduced new ways to participate and activities. Although the performance of their tokens varies, the platform tokens have doubled in price in the short term, indicating that the launch of new activities may have had some effect.

Pump Fun

Pump Fun sparked a wave of meme token frenzy in the second half of 2024. At its peak, the platform was generating over $7 million a day, and even with the current cooling of meme enthusiasm, daily income still remains at around $1.5 million. Since its launch, Pump Fun has earned over $600 million in total, making it a veritable money printing machine in the crypto world.

The revenue of Pump Fun is valued in SOL. Unlike other projects in the Solana ecosystem, Pump Fun chooses to continuously sell the SOL they hold and convert it into USDC. Since 2025, they have sold a total of $317 million worth of SOL tokens, an astonishing amount.

This approach does not look good, and coupled with some previous negative events, although Pump Fun has strong profitability in the Solana ecosystem, it has not received strong support from the foundation.

In terms of token issuance, Pump Fun has become the preferred platform, covering a variety of themes including animals, puns, news events, AI, and more. Basically, any concept can be turned into a meme token here, so the platform itself does not particularly emphasize any specific type of token.

LetsBonk

Compared to Pump Fun, LetsBonk has a more orthodox position within the ecosystem. This is mainly because BONK, as the most representative meme token on the Solana chain, is a foundational project with wealth effect, having been deeply cultivated in the Solana ecosystem for over four years. In addition to recently receiving support from some well-known figures, BONK has long been active in various offline events within the Solana community.

In terms of platform mechanisms, LetsBonk is more transparent and conducive to ecological development. Its revenue comes from 1% of transaction fees, which are used for:

• Platform operation and growth
• Support validators, promote DeFi development and protect the network
• Buyback and burn BONK (related features coming soon)

In addition, LetsBonk has also collaborated with a certain DEX's LaunchLab, demonstrating its support for the Solana ecosystem.

The token with the highest market value listed on the LetsBonk platform is Hosico, reaching 38 million USD, inspired by a popular Scottish Fold cat. Other tokens worth noting include the eponymous token Letsbonk and Grassiot. Letsbonk was once regarded as the official platform coin, with a market value of 30 million USD on its first day of trading, but subsequently declined to around 4 million USD due to various new tokens diverting attention. Grassiot has attracted attention due to the involvement of the BONK founder, with its market value falling from a peak of 13 million USD to about 4.3 million USD.

Virtuals Protocol

Virtuals Protocol was originally established on the Base chain as an AI Agent LaunchPad and has recently expanded to the Solana chain. Its business model is simple; users need to consume VIRTUAL tokens to create and trade tokens on the platform. However, as the AI craze has subsided, the number of tokens successfully issued on the platform daily has decreased from over 100 to less than 10.

Recently, Virtuals Protocol launched a major update:

1. Virgen Points System: Used to access pre-TGE token allocations, especially for large AI agent launches. These points directly affect the user's eligibility and rights to participate on the platform.

2. AI agents launch with a fully diluted market capitalization of 336,000 $VIRTUAL (approximately 232.58k USD), and all users gain equal early access through Virgen Points.

3. The ways to earn points include:

   • Trade Sentient and Prototype Agent tokens
   • Hold $VIRTUAL tokens
   • Create content related to Virtuals Protocol
   • Staking $VADER tokens

4. Participation Method:

   • Participate by committing Virgen Points, with a maximum token allocation of 0.5% of the total supply.
   • Invest $VIRTUAL tokens, up to 566 to ensure maximum allocation
   • After successfully starting, claim the purchased tokens on the Agent page.

Virtuals Protocol is creating a more focused and loyal LaunchPad, similar to the point-based new listing activities launched by some exchanges. For users who are optimistic about this system, there are three main participation methods: directly purchasing $VIRTUAL or $VADER tokens to go long, or participating in the points activity.

Summary

Pump Fun, LetsBonk, and Virtuals Protocol each have their advantages and challenges:

• Pump Fun consolidates the traffic entry with a strong sell-off and high profit model, but has been questioned due to frequent cash-outs and negative events.
• LetsBonk shows goodwill to the ecosystem through deep community engagement and low fee sharing, but the distraction of platform tokens and secondary tokens may affect long-term participation.
• The points mechanism of Virtuals Protocol and the innovative layout of AI Agents are impressive, but they have not yet demonstrated stable issuance capabilities, and the sustainability of user enthusiasm remains to be observed.

The next wave of excitement in the LaunchPad track will depend on value realization and community resilience. The platform needs to balance short-term hype and long-term ecological construction through mechanism design, while project parties need to provide real utility instead of relying solely on narratives. The market will test which model is more sustainable. For researchers and participants, in addition to focusing on platform traffic and token price fluctuations, it is also essential to deeply consider the core risks of each mechanism and their potential for future upgrades to identify projects worthy of long-term attention.