TLDR
- Raydium is introducing LaunchLab, its fresh token issuance platform, setting its sights on competing with Pump.fun.
- Following the announcement, the RAY token climbed by 28%, ascending from a value of $1.6 to $2.
- LaunchLab will feature three distinct bonding curves, also enabling external interfaces to determine their own fee structures.
- This new platform launch follows reports of Pump.fun experimenting with its own AMM, which suggests a potential drift from utilizing Raydium.
- Meme coin market capitalization has plummeted approximately 65% from its December 2024 highs.
Raydium, a decentralized exchange that's part of the Solana network, is rolling out LaunchLab, aiming to boost earnings and broaden its user community for its well-regarded trading services.
The announcement has been a boon for Raydium's RAY token, which soared 28% on Tuesday, jumping from $1.6 to $2 amid a recent 60% dip over the prior month.
Unlike the popular token issuance platform Pump.fun, LaunchLab, according to Raydium's developers, boasts extra features designed to enrich token launches.
The platform includes three types of bonding curves, which balance the market demand and token pricing on decentralized exchanges, giving users varied pricing options.
Additionally, LaunchLab will support third-party UIs to impose their own fees, potentially drawing more partners while supporting multiple quote tokens.
Raydium's developer @0xINFRA announced on X that integrating the service into existing Raydium applications, such as AMM v4, CP-Swap, and CLMM pools, would be straightforward.
Emphasizing LaunchLab is no mere clone of Pump.fun, the developer noted the familiar interface belies its multifunctional nature, serving as the first of potentially many tools in development.
Spotlight on LaunchLab's Features and How the Market Has Responded
Currently, Raydium's liquidity pools generate over $1 million in daily fees. In February, Dune reported that over 30% of these came from trades in Pump.fun tokens.
LaunchLab's debut follows hints that Pump.fun may be building its own AMM, hinting at a possible migration away from Raydium as its platform of choice, which triggered a 30% downturn in RAY's price.
No official alliance exists between the teams, and neither has publicly addressed the shifting dynamics between them.
With the meme coin sector's market value down around 65% from its zenith in December 2024, the launch of LaunchLab comes amid a turbulent time. Meanwhile, Pump.fun has seen a graduation rate of less than 1% since mid-February, indicating a slow transition to full tradability.
Despite the instability, Raydium anticipates its solid foundation will give it a leg up, although some market pundits suggest it may struggle to maintain user engagement.
According to Ceteris from Delphi Digital, though Raydium offers the foundational infrastructure, user interface champions like Pump.fun retain user control, highlighting, \"Pump.fun owns the user; Raydium is merely backend support.\"
will take the opposite view of this.
Users often navigate to Jupiter post-bonding for trades, with many likely unaware they're accessing Raydium's pools, underscoring the difficulty in capturing user loyalty.
Jongwon Park from Story Protocol noted that simplifying the interaction with multiple AMMs in the crypto space enhances user experience, stating, \"Products hold the throne, and AMM liquidity gravitates toward them.\" https://t.co/kmnIWEuYZ0
— ceteris (@ceterispar1bus) March 18, 2025
Through the unveiling of LaunchLab, Raydium aims to sustain its foothold in the Solana landscape by ensuring revenue protection and broadening its service offerings amidst fierce competition.
Maisie is a seasoned journalist specializing in Crypto & Financial news, contributing to renowned platforms including Moneycheck.com, level-up-casino-app.com, Computing.net, and leading Blockfresh.com as Editor in Chief.
