Pump.fun rejiggers memecoin fees to reward traders, not just creators

Pump.fun, the Solana-based memecoin launchpad, is shaking up its creator-fee system after realizing last year’s Dynamic Fees V1 incentivized coin creation over the trading activity that fuels the platform.

Pump.fun co-founder Alon Cohen acknowledged in his first in over two months that the V1 model succeeded in attracting new builders and boosting on-chain activity but failed to meaningfully influence the behavior of average memecoin deployers. “Creator fees may have skewed incentives toward low-risk coin creation instead of high-risk trading,” Cohen wrote, emphasizing that traders are the lifeblood of the platform.

Dynamic Fees V1, introduced in September as part of Project Ascend, used tiered fees based on token market capitalization, lowering fees as tokens grew to balance long-term sustainability with participation.

Now, Pump.fun is rolling out creator fee sharing, allowing teams to split fees across up to 10 wallets, transfer ownership, and assign fee percentages post-launch. Future updates will adopt a market-based approach, letting traders decide whether a token narrative justifies creator fees.

Cohen said the changes are just the first step in rebalancing incentives heading into 2026, signaling a shift from rewarding deployers to empowering the traders who keep memecoin markets alive and vibrant.