Is Charity the New Utility for Meme Coins? Binance’s Changpeng Zhao Thinks So

Giggle Academy, a free on-chain learning platform backed by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ), has raised $880,000 in its first two hours of opening donations.

The bulk of these donations come from a newly launched GIGGLE token. What began as a lighthearted meme coin experiment quickly escalated into a major education initiative.

Giggle Academy Turns Meme Coin Momentum Into $880,000

The surge began when Rune, a trader and popular user on X (Twitter), suggested that meme coins could serve charitable functions.

“Hey CZ, would Giggle accept donations from tokens? An utility of meme coins is charity,” Rune wrote on X (Twitter).

The trader pointed to past examples, such as Vitalik Buterin’s Shiba Inu donation and WaterCoin’s funding for MrBeast’s clean water project.

According to Rune, the response was immediate. Within hours, $880,000 had been donated, $56,000 of which came directly from GIGGLE trading fees, which flowed in at one point at $1,000 per minute.

Unlike previous meme-fueled charity efforts, GIGGLE takes a structured approach. The token, trading on BNB Chain, sends contributions in BNB rather than in its own token.

According to Rune, this is a healthy way to donate, as it avoids clogging the donation process with illiquid or unstable assets.

Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao Sets Expectations

Changpeng Zhao, meanwhile, set expectations, articulating that GiggleAcademy will convert/sell the meme coins it receives to major altcoins before spending. Against this backdrop, he warned GIGGLE token holders against imminent selling pressure.

“We appreciate the donations, but please don’t complain about the selling pressure later,” he noted.

Giggle Academy is the education initiative CZ pushed ahead of his arrest, and the project he committed to fostering following his release.

Its mission is to offer free, high-quality education powered entirely by community donations. The project said contributions would go toward “Community Building & Creator Incentives, Ecosystem Development, Product Promotion & Impact Expansion.”

Further, 100% of the donated funds would be managed on-chain and accompanied by public reports for accountability.

Markets, too, took notice. The GIGGLE token surged over 400% on PancakeSwap DEX before retracing, though it still sits up 164% overall.

The volatility mirrors the speculative nature of meme assets, yet speculation is fueling something tangible in this case.

Notwithstanding, with Giggle Academy being a free (0 revenue) education platform, it becomes challenging to incentivize contributors.

Based on this, CZ noted that GIGGLE donations could bridge this gap, potentially expanding coverage.