Binance Co-founder He Yi’s Insights on MEME Culture
Binance co-founder He Yi recently wrote a short essay titled “MEME Learning Notes” on Binance Square. The article has attracted nearly three million views, primarily discussing the history of memes, the possibility of the next DOGE, the existence of long-termism in the crypto space, and investment advice for friends and family.
1. Subculture: From Margins to Mainstage
Expression is a commonality among humans; a good meme can transcend cultural maps and elicit a knowing smile. When the collective self-identity, emotions, and subjective intentions of the public overlap, unique values, semantics, and expressions are formed, such as the “Funeral Love Family” from the QQ era, social shaking in the age of mobile video, or the marginal “Sanhe God” in the post-industrial era, which have all created distinctive subcultures.
I did not grow up in Western culture, but I believe every culture has groups with which you can resonate deeply. The subcultures I mentioned earlier are very niche and outdated, not a good expression of memes, but they represent a certain extreme form in history, vivid and refreshing.
Essentially, no particular circle is genuinely superior. A hippie attending a meditation class may not be more refined than someone watching a storytelling session. Enjoying reincarnation and Star Wars is not necessarily more aesthetic than “Young and Dangerous,” as the more niche the aesthetic, the less commonality it usually has. Moreover, our generation has traversed the agricultural revolution, industrial revolution, and information revolution, colliding head-on with AI; chaos is the norm, and all authority is dissolved—every idol is merely that.
Meme is a silent thunderclap, the ultimate expression of a crowd, a challenge from subculture to mainstream culture. Therefore, being photoshopped or having tokens created is part of the deconstruction process. Thus, I feel I am not yet worthy of being at the center of memes.
Similarly, pursuing trending topics on Twitter, in CZ or my replies, is not the optimal path to discovering or creating memes; memes reside in your heart.
2. Who Can Surpass Doge?
There is only one Doge. In the first Bitcoin bull market of 2013, countless attempts were made to clone Bitcoin, mocking both Bitcoin and themselves, with a playful spirit and passionate fervor. Developers abandoned projects, yet communities thrived, and community-driven (CTO) initiatives made significant contributions to the development of crypto culture. The Chinese currency “Gann” sent Dogecoin worldwide, creating a unique niche in the crypto space: “For industry charity, reward the pioneers.”
Back then, BBS messages read: “I see you’re a good person; I reward you with 10,000 Dogecoin,” leaving the recipients bewildered, unable to calculate how much 10,000 Doge was worth without a calculator. Throughout the development of the crypto industry, each community has its own “Gann.” Later on, Elon Musk’s affection for Doge brought subculture into the mainstream. Today, Doge is not just a dog.
Meme represents attention economy but is not limited to attention. If everything resembles Twitter’s trending topics, then it is destined to be fleeting. Great memes do not arise from celebrities making clever remarks; that is insufficient to constitute a meme. It is a form of worship towards higher authorities (whether politicians or entrepreneurs), and that is not cool enough.
On the flip side, those who oppose for the sake of opposition often have a face that reflects extreme right-wing sentiments. Those who vehemently advocate for decentralization are often extremely centralized. Maintain critical thinking, and discern the true from the false.
Imagine someone in your group tells you to buy a trending topic today; tomorrow, of course, that topic will cool down. If this attention can become a product, a belief, or a religion, then the next Doge may emerge. Who says it’s impossible? Anything is possible.
3. Is Long-termism Outdated?
I do not trade but hold long-term, as I adhere to the logic of value investing. Similarly, in managing businesses, I uphold long-termism, whether building a clock or a garden. Binance is merely infrastructure, setting up a stage where project parties and investors can either win or lose together. This depends on capability, will, and judgment. Top entrepreneurs are already rare; to embrace long-termism, one must also DYOR and know when to take profit. It is not that long-termism is outdated; could it be that you have chosen the wrong long-termism object?
When the wind blows towards blockchain, investors throw significant amounts of money at projects, while entrepreneurs can claim their projects are worth 100M, 1B, or even 100B. Everything can issue tokens; prices and values may diverge, but over cycles, they will tend to converge.
The market size in 2017 was not as large as it is today; the capital scale of the DeFi summer in 2021 was also less than it is now. We see more excellent entrepreneurs investing in the Web3 industry; the industry size is growing, but confidence is decreasing.
Many users ask why project valuations cannot return to the ICO era. We can never go back to the past, but we are trying to let users vote on which tokens to list and which to delist, attempting to let Web3 wallets do IDOs. Project parties can choose low-threshold, low-market-value issuance, with real users profiting, which is far better than spending money to fabricate data and deceive oneself.
Whether it’s MEME or AI, games or DeFi, social or RWA, let a hundred flowers bloom. May we still have beer in our cups after every round of bubbles subsides. Fortunately, history always repeats itself; the grand narratives of technology changing the world will eventually be realized by successors. I hear many serious projects wish to give up; hey, friends, there will always be new opportunities, but the world belongs to the few who push forward. Rather than chasing opportunities, it’s better to become the opportunity.
4. Investment Advice Friends Often Ask
All my assets are in cryptocurrencies, and the long-term holding style may not suit most people, but one point can be referenced: earn money with certainty.
Earn money with cycles, which requires judgment on economic cycles and bull/bear markets. Selling in bull markets and buying in bear markets is basic operation.
Any assets follow the principle of primacy.
It is recommended to allocate at least 20% of your assets to cryptocurrencies. Land is an asset of agricultural civilization, minerals are hard currency of the industrial era, and the top assets in the information age are the stocks of leading internet companies and tokens that have a siphoning effect.
Some friends say that coins with good fundamentals do not have enough volatility. If you do not use leverage, or if trading some high-risk tokens does not provide opportunities, it is advisable not to exceed 10% of your disposable assets.
Most of the principles are understood by everyone; there is no need for me to preach. It’s just difficult to implement, much like losing weight. I wish everyone knows and can achieve this.
Risk Warning
Cryptocurrency investment carries a high level of risk, and its prices can be highly volatile. You may lose all your principal. Please assess risks cautiously.