Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, and Solana: A Primer
for Meme-Token Projects
Blockchain Basics: A blockchain is essentially a distributed ledger – imagine a public spreadsheet that
everyone can see and verify. It consists of a chain of “blocks,” each containing a batch of transactions. Every
block securely links to the previous one via cryptographic hashes, making the record tamper-evident 1 .
This ledger is maintained by a network of nodes (computers) that must agree on each update. Different
blockchains use different consensus mechanisms to reach agreement. For example, Bitcoin uses Proof-of-
Work (nodes solve puzzles) and Ethereum (after 2022) uses Proof-of-Stake (nodes are randomly chosen to
propose blocks based on their coin holdings) 2 3 . Solana uses a special mix – a fast Proof-of-History
time-stamping system together with PoS – to order events quickly 4 5 . In practice, when you send a
transaction, nodes broadcast it across the network; validators then check it and once consensus is reached,
the transaction is added to a new block and becomes a permanent part of the ledger 6 7 .
Keys and Wallets: Cryptocurrencies use public-key cryptography for identity and security. Every user has a
public key (an address anyone can send coins to) and a private key (a secret code only the owner knows).
You can think of a public key like a bank account number (shareable) and a private key like the password to
access that account 8 . The public key is mathematically derived from the private key (one-way), so you can
share your address openly but your private key must stay secret 9 8 . In fact, losing your private key is
like losing the password to your crypto safe – whoever has it controls the coins. A cryptocurrency wallet is
simply software (or hardware) that stores your private keys and addresses. It lets you sign transactions
(sending coins) and view your balance. As Investopedia explains, a crypto wallet “stores your cryptocurrency
keys and lets you access your coins” – anyone with the private key can spend the coins 10 .
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Consensus and Security: The key innovation of blockchain is removing trusted intermediaries. Instead of
one bank or server verifying transactions, many independent nodes do so together via consensus. On-chain
transactions thus require network agreement. Coinbase puts it succinctly: on-chain transactions occur
directly on the blockchain (making them transparent and secure) but they tend to be slower and costlier,
while off-chain (Layer-2) solutions operate outside the main chain and can be faster/cheaper (at the
expense of some security trade-offs) 6 . (We’ll cover on-chain vs off-chain in more detail later.)
Cryptocurrency Fundamentals
Coins vs. Tokens: A cryptocurrency coin (like Bitcoin or Solana’s SOL) is a native asset of its own blockchain. A
token is built on top of an existing blockchain platform (e.g. an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, or an SPL token
on Solana). Coins generally serve as a medium of exchange or store of value on that blockchain, while
tokens can represent all sorts of programmable assets or utilities 11 . In simple terms: coins have their own
independent chains; tokens piggyback on an existing chain 11 . For example, every Dogecoin is just Dogecoin
on Dogecoin’s own chain, whereas Tether (USDT) is a token on Ethereum, Tron, Solana, etc.
Wallets and Transactions: When you hold crypto, your wallet doesn't hold “coins” in a bank; it holds keys. If
someone knows your public address, they can send coins to you. To spend or transfer coins out of your
wallet, you sign a transaction with your private key. This creates a digital signature proving you authorized
the transfer – the network can verify it using your public key without revealing your private key 12 . Every
time you do this, the transaction is broadcast to the network and, once validated, it changes the ledger
(your balance goes down, recipient’s goes up). This is why keeping private keys safe is critical: “if anyone has
access to the private keys, they will also have access to any cryptocurrency associated with those keys” 9
10 .
Gas and Fees: Blockchains charge fees (often called gas) for each transaction or operation. Think of gas as
the “toll” you pay validators for including your transaction in the ledger. Gas fees compensate the nodes
that run the network. For example, on Ethereum, these fees are paid in tiny fractions of ETH called
“gwei” 13 . Coinbase notes that gas fees “serve as a form of remuneration for validators who maintain and
secure the network” 14 . Fees fluctuate with demand: during congestion (lots of users), gas prices rise. On
Solana, fees are generally much lower than Ethereum (due to Solana’s design), but the concept is the same –
you pay a small fee in SOL (or lamports, Solana’s smallest unit) per transaction.
Smart Contracts: These are self-executing programs on the blockchain. When certain conditions are met,
they automatically carry out actions (like moving tokens between accounts). As Investopedia explains, you
can think of a smart contract like a vending machine 15 . When you “insert” the correct cryptocurrency
(say, sending 1 token) and call a function on the contract, it automatically performs some logic (e.g. issues
you a different token, or records data) without any middleman. Everything the smart contract does is
transparent, verifiable, and cannot be changed once deployed. Smart contracts enable complex operations
– from token minting to lending to games – without needing a bank or a broker in between 15 .
Solana Blockchain Overview
What is Solana? Solana is a high-performance blockchain (Layer-1 platform) designed for speed and
scalability 16 . Unlike older chains that can get congested, Solana’s architecture prioritizes fast transaction
throughput (it claims up to ~50,000 transactions per second) 17 . It achieves this with several innovations.
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Most famously, it uses Proof of History (PoH): a verifiable delay function that timestamps events so
validators can agree on order without lots of communication 4 18 . In practice, Solana’s validators keep a
global clock via PoH, then run a variant of delegated Proof-of-Stake (called Tower BFT) to vote on blocks 5
18 . This design reduces consensus overhead and enables extremely high throughput 17 5 . For
comparison, Solana’s team advertises peak speeds far above chains like Ethereum (on the order of tens of
thousands of TPS) 17 .
Solana also uses parallelism: it can execute many transactions concurrently across GPU cores (“Sea Level”)
and pipeline data in stages. In fact, it’s the only chain built to scale horizontally across GPUs and support
parallel execution within a single shard 19 . Other blockchains (like Ethereum pre-2.0, or Bitcoin) process
transactions mostly single-threaded. In short, Solana’s consensus and runtime allow much faster, cheaper
transactions in exchange for its particular trade-offs in complexity and decentralization.
Solana’s Account Model: A key difference on Solana is how state is handled. Every piece of data (including
accounts and tokens) lives in on-chain “accounts,” each with a unique address. Importantly, a Solana
program (smart contract) stores its executable code in one account, and any mutable state in separate data
accounts it owns 20 . This is unlike Ethereum where the code and state share one address. In Solana, you
must explicitly pass all accounts a program will read or write into each transaction. This allows parallel
validation (since there are no hidden state dependencies), but means developers must carefully manage
account access. (In short: on Solana, code and data are separate accounts, and programs use accounts as
movable pieces of global state 20 .)
Tokens on Solana: Solana uses the SPL Token Standard (Solana Program Library) for fungible and non-
fungible tokens. Every SPL token type is identified by a Mint Account on-chain 21 . The Mint account acts
like the token’s registry: it holds the total supply and the token’s parameters. Critically, the Mint account also
records a mint authority (who is allowed to create new tokens) and optionally a freeze authority (who can
freeze transfers) 21 . For example, if the mint authority is set to a key you control, you can issue (mint) new
coins; if no mint authority is set, the token’s supply is fixed forever. Each user’s holdings are tracked in
separate Token Accounts on Solana – one Token Account per wallet per token. The SPL standard keeps track
of who owns how many tokens by updating these accounts. In practice, you often don’t have to code your
own token contract; Solana provides a built-in Token Program to mint, transfer and burn tokens. (You’d
simply create a new Mint and then token accounts for users.) Metadata: By default, a Mint account only
stores basic info (supply, decimals, authorities). For human-friendly data (like token name, symbol, and
icon), Solana projects commonly use a Metadata program (part of the Metaplex framework). With this, you
can attach an off-chain URI or on-chain fields for name, symbol, logo, etc. For example, an NFT’s mint will
have metadata linking to its artwork. Overall, Solana’s token system is similar to Ethereum’s ERC-20 but with
its own SPL format, accounts, and optional metadata extensions.
DeFi Primitives and Mechanics
Building a meme-token exchange involves common decentralized finance (DeFi) tools. Here are the core
concepts:
• Bonding Curves: A bonding curve is a formula that links a token’s price to its supply 22 . The idea is
to create an automated pricing function: as more tokens are bought (increasing supply), the price
rises; as tokens are sold (supply decreases), the price falls 23 . In practice, a smart contract can use a
simple curve (linear, exponential, etc.) so that each time someone buys tokens, new ones are minted
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at the current price and the price updates. Conversely, when tokens are sold back, they’re burned
and the price drops. This ensures the token has built-in liquidity and a transparent price path. For
example, on a linear curve one might say “for every 100 tokens in supply, price goes up by
$0.01” 23 . Bonding curves are often used in “continuous token models” where the contract itself
always stands ready to buy or sell at the formulaic price.
• Liquidity Pools & Swaps (AMMs): Another way to enable trading is via a liquidity pool – a smart
contract that holds reserves of two (or more) tokens. Traders can swap one token for another
against this pool, rather than matching with a counterparty directly. As BitPay explains, “a liquidity
pool is a collection of crypto held in a smart contract… [whose] purpose is to facilitate
transactions” 24 . In exchange for providing assets to the pool, users earn fees and LP (liquidity
provider) tokens. Automated Market Maker (AMM) algorithms (like Uniswap’s constant-product
formula) continuously adjust the swap price based on the pool’s balances. For instance, in a simple
constant-product AMM, the pool maintains the product of the two token reserves at a constant,
which automatically pushes prices up or down as traders swap 25 . This means prices “adjust in
lockstep” with supply and demand on-chain. Importantly, pools let any trader swap tokens directly
“from their wallets” without an order book 26 . In fact, without a traditional order book, trades can
execute faster and more efficiently 26 27 . (Traders simply pay into the pool and receive output
tokens; the AMM math handles pricing.)
• Price Discovery: In DeFi, price discovery happens automatically through these mechanisms. Broadly,
price discovery is the market process of finding an asset’s fair value via the interplay of buyers and
sellers 28 . On-chain, if a token is bought from a bonding curve or an AMM pool, the price is
immediately updated on-chain (reflecting current supply vs demand). If many people want the
token, they drive up its on-chain price; if many want to sell, the price drops. ShiftMarkets notes that
the transaction price “reflects a consensus between what buyers are willing to pay and what sellers
are willing to accept” 29 . In practice, because blockchain markets trade 24/7 and publicly, prices can
move very quickly with any change in interest or liquidity.
• Token Supply Dynamics: The total supply of the token also affects economics. A fixed supply (like
Bitcoin’s 21 million cap 30 ) creates scarcity: if demand grows but supply doesn’t, price tends to rise.
An inflationary supply (new tokens minted over time) can have the opposite effect: as Investopedia
notes, more coins entering the market generally decreases each coin’s value (assuming demand is
constant) 31 . For example, Dogecoin famously removed its 100-billion cap in 2014; its essentially
unlimited inflation contributed to downward pressure on Doge’s price when demand was
outstripped by new supply 31 . Meme tokens often experiment with supply models: some have fixed
cap, some mint new coins per block, and some use periodic “burning” (destroying tokens) to reduce
supply. In any case, understanding how minting/burning rules affect supply is key to predicting
token value changes.
On-Chain vs. Off-Chain Architecture
When designing a crypto application, it’s vital to decide what lives on the blockchain (on-chain) versus
outside it (off-chain). On-chain actions are recorded in blocks and validated by all nodes: they include token
minting, transfers, swaps – essentially any change to shared state. Coinbase emphasizes that on-chain
transactions are “recorded and validated on the blockchain, providing a level of security and
transparency” 7 . Off-chain processes happen outside consensus – for example, a web server updating a
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database or a second-layer network bundling transactions. Coinbase notes off-chain swaps are typically
faster and cheaper because they don’t hit the main chain immediately 6 .
In a meme-token platform, the core token contracts and balances must be on-chain (so everyone agrees
on the supply and who holds what). In contrast, things like the user interface, historical charts, user profiles
or analytics are off-chain. For example, a website might cache token price history from the chain or display
token images stored on IPFS, but the actual token minting/burning logic runs on-chain. As Investopedia
explains, off-chain solutions (like a Layer-2 or backend service) can reduce fees and latency, but they
eventually “send the information to the primary blockchain for recording” 32 . In summary, any part of the
system that requires decentralization or shared trust goes on-chain, while auxiliary services can run off-
chain for speed and convenience.
Solana Token Standards, Mint Authorities, and Metadata
On Solana, every token follows the SPL standard. As noted above, each token has a Mint account storing its
total supply and authorities 21 . A key property is the mint authority: only this public key can create (mint)
new tokens by increasing the supply 21 . If the mint authority is set to None , the token is immutable and
no more tokens can be minted. There is also an optional freeze authority who can lock or unlock token
transfers for added control 21 . Each user’s wallet holds tokens in separate Token Accounts – these are on-
chain records showing how many of that token each owner has. To hold multiple token types, a wallet
needs one Token Account per mint.
Solana also allows attaching human-readable metadata to tokens (especially NFTs). Using the Token
Metadata program (part of Metaplex), developers can store a token’s name, symbol, image link and more in
an on-chain structure. For example, a mint can be initialized with a name and symbol, and linked to a URI
with JSON metadata (like an image file for an NFT). The Solana docs describe how to initialize-
metadata on a mint to set its name, symbol, and URI 33 . In this way, wallets and explorers can display
token info. (Without metadata, a token is just a random address and number on-chain; with metadata it
becomes a branded asset.)
Meme Tokens and Emojicoin
Meme coins are novelty tokens inspired by internet culture or jokes. They are often launched by anyone
(with minimal barriers) and gain popularity through online buzz. As PBS News explains, “so-called meme
coins… are all over the Internet with new tokens popping up every day by the thousands.” Their values can spike
on viral trends or celebrity hype, but most fail to gain traction and “crash or disappear” 34 . A famous
example is Dogecoin: created as a joke, it eventually reached a market cap over $20 billion 35 because
people liked the meme and started trading it. In effect, buying a meme coin is often more like fun gambling
than investing – people enjoy collecting and trading these tokens as a social game or joke 36 .
A platform like emojicoin.fun (originally on Aptos) lets anyone create, buy, and sell emoji-themed tokens. As
the Aptos Foundation notes, emojicoin.fun “allows anyone to launch, trade & swap emojicoins” 37 . To a
user, this feels like picking an emoji picture, clicking “mint” or “buy,” and paying some cryptocurrency to
receive that token. Under the hood, each emoji corresponds to an SPL token mint on the blockchain. When
you launch or buy an emoji token, your wallet sends a transaction to the on-chain program, which mints or
transfers the specified number of tokens. A bonding curve or pool might determine the price (in SOL) for
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each emoji. The on-chain system simply keeps track of who owns how many of each emoji token (in their
Token Accounts), while the web interface shows images and buttons. In short, from a system perspective,
meme tokens are just ordinary tokens – the “meme” aspect comes from how they’re branded and used
socially 34 37 .
Building an Emojicoin Platform on Solana: Architecture Overview
To build a meme-token exchange on Solana (like an “Emojicoin” platform), you’d combine on-chain
programs with a web front-end and wallet integration. Key components include:
• Smart Contracts (Solana Programs): You would write on-chain programs to handle token logic. This
might include an SPL Token mint program (to create each emoji token), and additional programs for
any special mechanics (like a bonding-curve price or swap function). These programs run on Solana
and update on-chain state (token supplies, balances) when users interact.
• Frontend/Web App: A web interface (e.g. built with React or Next.js) where users can see available
emoji tokens, prices, and perform actions (mint, buy, sell). The frontend queries Solana for current
token data (balances, prices via on-chain state or events) and sends transactions when the user clicks
a button.
• Wallet Integration: The site must integrate with Solana wallets (such as Phantom or Solflare). When
a user wants to mint or trade an emoji token, the frontend asks the wallet to sign and submit the
transaction to Solana. This is analogous to connecting MetaMask on Ethereum. Wallet adapters
provided by Solana libraries make this straightforward.
• Off-Chain Backend (optional): You might include a server or database to enhance the experience.
For example, a backend could index blockchain events to provide historical charts, or store
community content. It could also cache token metadata or host images (via IPFS or cloud storage).
However, all core token operations remain on-chain for transparency and trust.
• Infrastructure and Libraries: Under the hood, you’d use Solana tooling (e.g. Anchor or Solana-
Web3.js) to deploy and call programs. The frontend would use RPC nodes or a service like the Solana
JSON RPC to read/write on-chain data. Everything from mint authorities to fee payments is managed
via on-chain transactions.
In practice, the steps are: deploy smart contracts for tokens and swaps, build a web UI that uses Solana
wallets, and connect the two so that user actions trigger transactions. This setup is very similar to existing
DeFi dApps: it “marries Web2 & Web3,” requiring both traditional frontend skills and blockchain integration
38 7 . As seen in platforms like emojicoin.fun, the goal is simply to let users “launch, trade & swap” tokens
easily 37 . By understanding these components – blockchain fundamentals, Solana’s unique model, DeFi
mechanics, and dApp architecture – you’ll be equipped to lead a team in building a Solana-based meme-
token platform from concept to launch.
Sources: Authoritative blockchain and Solana documentation and educational resources have been cited
throughout, including Investopedia, Coinbase Learn, official Solana docs, and industry articles 1 9 13
15 11 22 24 26 28 17 5 21 37 34 (see each section for context).
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