Pump.fun's native token PUMP experienced a significant price surge of 14% following the announcement and launch of 'Project Ascend,' a major ecosystem update that introduces a reimagined creator fee system. The update represents a strategic shift in the platform's revenue model aimed at enhancing ecosystem longevity and attracting talent to the Solana-based meme coin launchpad.
The core of Project Ascend involves a tiered fee structure called 'Dynamic Fees V1,' which progressively lowers rewards to creators as their launched tokens achieve higher market capitalizations. This inverse tier approach is designed to encourage smaller projects to stand out and drive what the platform describes as an 'exponential increase in talent onboarding.' The system applies to all PumpSwap tokens while protocol and liquidity provider fee allocations remain unchanged.
According to Pump.fun co-founder Cohen, the platform has already repurchased $20 million worth of PUMP tokens after the launch, with an additional $550,000 bought in recent days. The update also includes a community application process to report projects and cancel creator fees, aiming to deter bad actors on the platform.
Despite the positive market reaction, which saw increased trading volumes on Solana decentralized exchanges, the community has expressed some concerns. These include questions about the fiscal sustainability of the tiered fee system amid declining meme coin markets, the platform's ongoing scam token problem, and the delayed promised airdrop that still hasn't been distributed.