# Vitalik 'Unhappy' with Celebrity Memecoin Experiments

*Author: Jack Inabinet*
*Published: Jun 5, 2024*
*Source: https://www.bankless.com/vitalik-is-unhappy-with-celebrity-experiments-like-mother*

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Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin gave his thoughts on the most recent iteration of celebrity-promoted memecoins this morning.

> A quick summary of features that a celebrity crypto project needs to have for me to be more willing to respect it:1. Have some kind of public-good goal that it's serving, other than enriching the celebrity and early adopters. Realistically, either an art project or the…— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) [June 5, 2024](https://twitter.com/VitalikButerin/status/1798293391144366184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

### What’s the scoop?
- **Plain Unhappy: **While financialization can be justified when it brings value to society, Vitalik expresses strong disagreement with financialization in the absence of a real product.
- **Proposed Fixes: **Vitalik claims that he would be willing to respect celebrity-promoted projects that serve some form of greater good, include onchain mechanisms beyond simple token trading, and that can gain long-term adoption. These projects will make everyone involved feel satisfied, even if their underlying assets go to zero.
- **Stoner Cat Success: **To showcase celebrity projects that border on acceptable, Vitalik highlights the Stoner Cats NFT collection from Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, and Chris Rock. Although the entity behind Stoner Cats was [charged](https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2023-178) by the SEC for offering unregistered digital asset securities last September, Vitalik expresses admiration for the Project’s creation of an actual show.

### **Bankless Take:**
Solana's latest memecoin fervor has brought in a host of minor celebrities, promising nothing but a good time. As demonstrated by the SEC’s Stoner Cats enforcement action, it is inherently difficult for celebrities to promote crypto assets with actual utility. Vitalik's latest critique comes with a pathway forward for celebrities to interact with crypto technology while mitigating legal exposure and yielding a net-positive impact on the industry.

[Solana’s Celebrity Memecoin Sideshow on BanklessCelebrities are coming for a good time, not a long time.![](https://www.bankless.com/assets/img/favicon/apple-touch-icon.png)BanklessJack Inabinet![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e4/b7/e4b77544-5a37-4f0b-8824-8440aa348476/content/images/2024/06/NL_celeb_memecoin.webp)](https://www.bankless.com/solanas-celebrity-memecoin-sideshow)
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