BTC mining stocks, AI, and the gaming sector might stand out in the third quarter, one observer said.
Q2 Crypto Highlights
The second quarter saw three tokens – Brett (BRETT), Ton Network’s TON, and Kaspa’s KAS – emerge as notable performers. Meanwhile, Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a decline, pulling most major digital assets, including Ether (ETH), lower.
BRETT, a memecoin from the Base Chain inspired by the character Brett from Boys’ Club, more than doubled to 15 cents, becoming the top performer among the top 100 coins by market value, according to TradingView and CoinMarketCap. Toncoin (TON), the native cryptocurrency of The Open Network (TON), rose 42% to $7.65, and Kaspa blockchain’s KAS surged over 35%. In contrast, the total crypto market capitalization fell 13.8% to $2.2 trillion.
Meme Coin Mania
The rise of BRETT wasn’t an isolated event but part of a broader meme coin trend. DYOR’s Dune-based relative strength crypto narrative tracker showed the meme coin sub-sector rose over 45% in three months while others posted losses.
Another top-performing asset was culture coin MOG, driven by positive sentiment and a cult-like following on social platforms like X. MOG’s market capitalization soared from $220 million in early April to over $700 million, briefly placing it among the top hundred tokens by that metric.
In bullish cycles, investors often rotate profits from larger coins like Bitcoin into smaller tokens like meme coins, fueling price increases and retail investor FOMO (fear of missing out). The fate of meme coins is tied to investor risk appetite and credit availability.
BRETT’s rise began in May when Bitcoin consolidated near $70,000, with its market capitalization nearing $2 billion at one point. Kenny Hearn, chief investment officer at SwissOne Capital, noted that established meme coins often hit a liquidity wall at the $2 billion mark before profit-taking and sideways volatility ensue.
TON and Telegram’s Role
TON’s surge was linked to its involvement with the messaging app Telegram, which has 1.56 billion users worldwide and 800 million active users. Justin Hyun, TON’s Director of Investments, stated, “A toncoin (TON)-based economy is starting to take root in the messaging app Telegram.”
Several factors boosted TON’s adoption, including Telegram’s pivot to TON payments for advertisements and the Open League reward program. The integration of tether (USDT) and the debut of Telegram-based game Notcoin’s digital token also increased network activity.
In Q2, TON’s daily active addresses rose to nearly 600,000, surpassing Ethereum. This growth was driven by the introduction of mini apps, decentralized apps embedded into Telegram. Notcoin, one of these apps, gained traction as users could “mine” Notcoin by pressing a button within Telegram. Katie Talati, head of research at Arca, highlighted that the launch of USDT on TON and Pantera’s significant investment in TON were major catalysts.
Kaspa’s Innovative Approach
Kaspa’s KAS token gained attention due to its parent proof-of-work (PoW) blockchain’s efforts to solve the blockchain trilemma (scalability, decentralization, security). Kaspa’s GHOSDAG technology processes transactions asynchronously and in parallel, enhancing performance and security while retaining PoW’s benefits.
Hearn explained that Kaspa’s approach to solving the trilemma with its DAG structure (supporting speed and scalability) and PoW security benefits has garnered strong market support. Additionally, KAS received a boost from bitcoin miner Marathon Digital’s announcement of mining KAS to diversify its revenue stream.
Looking Ahead to Q3
Historically, the third quarter has been the weakest, with Bitcoin averaging just 5% gains over the past 13 years, compared to 60% in both the second and fourth quarters. The political landscape, including President Biden’s recent debate performance and potential replacements, might influence market sentiment.
Despite these challenges, crypto sub-sectors with strong fundamentals could continue to stand out. Hearn noted that projects like ONDO, JASMY, and ENS, which build quietly in the background and deliver on real use cases, hold long-term potential. Talati added that bitcoin mining stocks, artificial intelligence, gaming, and DeFi sectors could see growth.