Crypto Fun Or Bribery? Vitalik Buterin Weighs In On The ‘Risks’ Of Politician Memecoins

After last week’s memecoin frenzy, fueled by the US President’s official token launch, the crypto community is split on the possible implications of Donald Trump’s memecoin venture. Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin shared his concerns about the potential negative impact and “risks” of these tokens.

Politician Tokens: Sources Of Fun Or Vehicles For Bribery?

A week ago, US President Donald Trump took the crypto market by storm after launching his official token, TRUMP. The memecoin broke all records for newly launched cryptocurrencies, reaching a trading volume of over $10 billion, an all-time high (ATH) of $75, and a market capitalization of $15 billion in less than two days.

Nonetheless, the unprecedented launch raised concerns among the crypto community.  Many investors expressed skepticism, which intensified after seeing the token’s allocation was revealed. According to the official website, only 20% of the 1 billion TRUMP tokens created would be available to the public, while the other 80% was allocated to the issuers.

As a result, several community members have stated their doubts about the potential long-term implications of the TRUMP memecoin. Among these, Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin, took X to share his perspective.

On Thursday, Buterin revealed his concerns about “the risks of politician coins,” explaining that it’s time to open a conversation about the industry’s “new order”:

Over the last year, we have been entering a new order. Now, the most powerful people in the world are cheering on the idea of anyone creating tokens for anything, at any scale. And so now is the time to talk about the difference between sugar-high short-term fun that is unwise to recommend to newbies, and long-term fulfillment and wealth-building.

To the Ethereum founder, the conversation should not be about “fun is bad” but “the fact that large-scale political coins cross a further line.” He considers these tokens not to be a source of fun, with their harm contained in “mistakes made by voluntary participants.”

Instead, politicians’ tokens risk being “vehicles for unlimited political bribery, including from foreign nation-states.” After being inquired, Buterin further explained his position, stating that the risks of these cryptocurrencies come from being a “perfect” bribery vehicle, as it would not be necessary to send any tokens to give them money.

He suggests that a person could buy and hold the token, which would increase the value of their holdings passively. As a result, this could allow deniability, which would be a risk to democracy.

Crypto Community Split On Politician Memecoin

Buterin’s comments ignited a debate, with many community members disagreeing with his view. One X user considers that the Ethereum founder is “missing the point,” as bribery already exists, and it would be “better” if it’s visible on-chain.

Another user noted that Politician tokens could “democratize fundraising and align incentives with communities,” adding, “Innovation shouldn’t be dismissed because it challenges old systems.”

Recently, CrpyotQuant’s CEO, Ki Young Ju, shared a similar perspective. As reported by Bitcoinist, Ju considers that Trump “opened the era of memecoins,” as celebrity tokens are just one of the forms memecoins can take.

He asserted that it was worth considering how to make the most out of them and suggested that President Trump could potentially use those holding his cryptocurrency as a “powerful community base for collective actions.”

Ju also noted that these tokens’ value will depend on what the figure attached to them does, concluding that the ongoing wave seemed “unstoppable” until 2028.