What Is MEME (Ordinals) Crypto Coin? A Complete Guide

Key Takeaways

• MEME (Ordinals) is a Bitcoin‑native meme token built on the BRC‑20 standard.
• It uses the Ordinals protocol, meaning each token lives as a Bitcoin inscription.
• Supply is capped at 99,999 tokens, with roughly 99,861 in circulation.
• Liquidity is thin - most trading happens on UniSat DEX, and fees are paid in Bitcoin.
• Risks include high transaction costs, limited utility, and a volatile price history.

Ever wondered why a meme coin would sit on Bitcoin instead of Ethereum? MEME (Ordinals) (MEME) is a cryptocurrency token that lives on Bitcoin’s Ordinals protocol using the BRC‑20 token standard, designed to bring meme‑coin culture to the Bitcoin blockchain. In plain English, it’s a speculative token that leverages Bitcoin’s security while behaving like the goofy meme assets you’ve seen on other chains. This guide unpacks the tech, tokenomics, market performance, and practical steps to hold or trade MEME, so you can decide whether it’s worth a glance or a full‑blown investment.

Technical Foundations: Bitcoin, Ordinals, and BRC‑20

To grasp MEME you need three building blocks:

1. Bitcoin is the world’s first blockchain, offering a proof‑of‑work network that secures over 200 petabytes of transaction data.
2. Ordinals protocol lets developers assign a serial number to each satoshi and attach arbitrary data (like JSON) to it, turning a satoshi into a digital artifact.
3. BRC‑20 token standard is a convention for encoding token parameters (name, supply, decimals) inside an Ordinals inscription, effectively creating a token without a smart contract.

Because there is no smart contract, MEME’s code can’t be upgraded and all transfers follow Bitcoin’s UTXO model. The upside? You inherit Bitcoin’s massive hash power and network effect. The downside? Every transfer costs a Bitcoin mining fee, typically $5‑$50 depending on block space demand.

Tokenomics: Supply, Distribution, and Fees

MEME’s economics are simple but stark:

• Total supply: 99,999 tokens (hard‑capped, immutable).
• Circulating supply: ~99,861 tokens as of August 2024, meaning only about 138 tokens are locked or burned.
• Price history: All‑time high of $245.52 on 9 May 2023; current range (Oct 2025) sits around $8‑$10.
• Transaction fee structure: Fees are paid in Bitcoin; an inscription typically consumes 0.00002‑0.00015 BTC.

The limited supply creates a perception of scarcity, but thin liquidity means even a small trade can swing the price dramatically. For example, a $65 trade moved the price by over 15 % in a single day (2024).

Market Landscape: Exchanges, Liquidity, and Competition

Unlike Ethereum‑based meme coins that list on dozens of exchanges, MEME lives on a micro‑ecosystem:

• UniSat DEX handles >99.9 % of MEME volume, pairing MEME with BTC at roughly $8.27 per token.
• Gate.io once offered MEME/USDT but is now inactive with no recent trades.

By comparison, DOGE trades on >200 platforms with a 24‑hour volume of $1.7 billion, while SHIB tops $1 billion. MEME’s 24‑hour volume hovers near $410, making price discovery noisy and risky.

How to Acquire and Store MEME

Because MEME isn’t an ERC‑20 token, you can’t stash it in MetaMask. You need a Bitcoin wallet that supports Ordinals:

• Xverse wallet - a mobile app that lets you view and transfer BRC‑20 tokens.
• Leather wallet - a hardware‑based solution with Ordinals support.

Typical purchase flow:

1. Fund a Bitcoin address with enough BTC to cover the token cost plus the inscription fee.
2. Connect your Ordinals‑compatible wallet to UniSat DEX.
3. Swap BTC for MEME using the MEME/BTC pair; confirm the fee before broadcasting.
4. After the transaction confirms (usually 10‑30 minutes), the MEME tokens appear in your wallet’s “BRC‑20” tab.

Watch out for fee spikes during network congestion. Unlike Ethereum’s gas‑price estimator, you’ll need to manually set a higher sat‑per‑byte rate if you want a quick confirmation.

Risks, Criticisms, and Regulatory Outlook

Every meme coin carries risk, but MEME adds a few unique ones:

• Liquidity crunch: Thin order books mean price can swing wildly on tiny trades.
• High fees: Bitcoin’s block‑space cost can dwarf the token’s market price.
• No smart‑contract features: The token can’t be upgraded, frozen, or burned programmatically.
• Regulatory gray zone: The SEC hasn’t issued guidance on Ordinals‑based tokens; they could be classified as securities depending on distribution.

Analysts at CoinCodex refuse to give price predictions because historical data is too sparse. Meanwhile, Blockchain App Factory remains optimistic, arguing that as Bitcoin Ordinals proliferate, niche tokens like MEME could ride a wave of collector interest.

Future Outlook: Will MEME Survive?

The long‑term health of MEME ties directly to the broader adoption of the Ordinals ecosystem. If Bitcoin developers add native support for BRC‑20 wallets and layer‑2 solutions reduce fees, MEME could see a liquidity boost. Conversely, community pushback against “blockspace bloat” could lead to protocol changes that limit inscriptions, hurting MEME’s viability.

At present, MEME sits at rank #3,900 by market cap (≈ $1 million). That’s a drop of over 96 % from its 2023 peak. For most investors, MEME is a high‑risk speculative play rather than a store of value.

Comparison Table: MEME vs. Popular Meme Coins

Frequently Asked Questions