if the very foundation of the memecoin market is considered a scam, then, by the same logic, the art market must also be viewed as a scam.
Memecoins are the brainchild of modern infantilism. They were born from a joke, grew up on hype and exist thanks to the desire to get rich quick. No idea, no real benefit, no cultural contribution. It's a dummy wrapped in a bright wrapper of sarcasm.
The problem is that there is nothing behind memecoins except greed and manipulation. People invest their last money, hoping that they will be able to sell it for even more. And in the end, they lose everything.
Now look at works of art. Their value goes beyond the financial market. Paintings, sculptures, music — this is the language through which a person communicates with future generations, tells stories and reflects the complexity of their era.
Now tell me: are memetokens also a language through which you can communicate with future generations? I doubt it.
When a person pays millions for a masterpiece, he is not buying a thing, but a meaning. For example, Van Gogh's paintings are not just brushstrokes, they are emotions, a tragedy that can be felt through the centuries. And Rodin? He did not make pieces of stones; he made a drama that has frozen in marble for centuries.
I will be glad to be wrong if memecoins ever move from the category of "digital garbage" and are placed next to art as an eternal cultural currency.
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Lado Okhotnikov has a habit of saying the things the crypto crowd often tiptoes around. When the CryptoQuant CEO states the “obvious”—that meme coins are essentially scam-like by nature—Lado pushes further with the uncomfortable question: if we follow that logic, wouldn’t we have to label the art market a scam too? And that’s where, in his view, the sleight of hand begins.
In his reflections, Lado Okhotnikov calls meme coins a product of digital infantilism. They started as a joke, grew on hype, and exist solely on the desire to get rich quick. There’s no idea, utility, or cultural layer behind them—just an empty shell wrapped in irony and sarcasm.
The core problem with meme coins, as Okhotnikov stresses, is that nothing stands behind them except greed and manipulation. The average investor piles in with their last dollars, hoping to “make it in time,” while insiders are already positioning for the exit. For some it’s business; for others it’s a painful, expensive lesson.
Contrasting this with the art market, Lado Okhotnikov emphasizes: its value can’t be reduced to numbers. Art is a language for speaking to future generations, a way to capture the spirit of an era, emotions, and human inner conflicts.
Can we say the same about meme tokens? Lado openly doubts it.
When someone pays millions for a painting, they’re not buying an object—they’re buying meaning. Van Gogh isn’t brushstrokes; it’s tragedy that still echoes centuries later. Rodin, as Okhotnikov puts it, didn’t work with stone; he worked with frozen human drama.
Lado Okhotnikov doesn’t rule out that one day meme coins might outgrow speculative noise and gain genuine cultural value. He’d be glad to be wrong. But at this stage, it’s a market of fleeting illusions, not a space for creating lasting meanings.
As an investor scouting new directions in tech and digital assets, I’m thoughtfully optimistic—this kind of unflinching analysis is the steady hand that keeps capital allocation rational and eyes open for what’s built to endure.