Ethereum has seen it all, from the ICO boom of 2017 to the NFT and DeFi explosion of 2021. Yet, in every cycle, there is a constant: fees. Ethereum is not as scalable as Solana or Base, for example, and users are susceptible to changes in gas fees. While fee changes can be used to gauge trader sentiment, which influences Ethereum price prediction models, the drivers of these fee changes ought to be organic and sustainable.
In a blog post on September 21, Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, delivered a sobering message to crypto investors and degens chasing the next god candle. He thinks that for Ethereum to survive, the chain should not hinge on the fleeting frenzy of meme coins. It is an indirect dig at competitors, especially Solana, whose bloodline is directly fed by meme coin activity. As of September 22, Coingecko data shows that Solana meme coins are now worth over $10.5Bn.
(Source: Coingecko)
While Buterin is skeptical of meme coins, some of the top meme coins have their origins on Ethereum, with some going on to funnel millions of dollars to help scale the mainnet. Shiba Inu, for example, has a Shibarium Layer-2 for Ethereum, and SHIB USD is still one of the most valuable Ethereum meme coins.
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Meme coins are not necessarily bad for crypto. If anything, there is an argument that they are the only option for retailers to ride the crypto boom now that, for example, top-tier DeFi projects have been captured by venture capitalists. One analyst in particular projects the total meme coin market to command over $1T by the end of the decade.
Yet, Buterin thinks the overreliance on speculative fads like meme coins, or even NFTs, and high-risk DeFi schemes promising massive yields is dangerous for Ethereum as a network.
The Ethereum co-founder thinks the meme coin booms or the explosion of high-risk DeFi protocols are “temporary” and “recursive forces” running on hype. He adds that, on these dapps, most incentive chasers see ETH as valuable “because people use the Ethereum mainnet to buy and sell and leverage-trade ETH.”
Buterin notes that “it’s just not possible to say with a straight face you are excited about the ecosystem because it’s positively changing the world, if its single largest application is political memecoins.”
To illustrate the danger, he points to the 2021 Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) land sale that, though a success raking in millions in gas fees, was poorly designed, leading to the squandering of $180M in gas inefficiencies. The BAYC story, in Buterin’s view, highlights how speculative mania breeds waste, not the much-needed innovation Ethereum needs to move forward.
While NFTs faded, the rise of meme coins presents new challenges to Ethereum and investors. The boom of viral meme coins on the Ethereum mainnet can lead to gas spikes. Meanwhile, investors can be scammed or rug-pulled. Over the years, hundreds of millions of dollars, if not billions, have been stolen from retail investors.
Instead, Buterin thinks if developers must build the right things, steering away from “political meme coins”, the first smart contract will find its Google “search moment.” Low-risk DeFi protocols, though boring, could help attract trillions into Ethereum while consistently generating steady fees for node operators.
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In preparation for global adoption, Ethereum has been scaling. The Dencun upgrade from early 2024 slashed Layer-2 transaction costs, making it dirt cheap to trade on popular Layer-2s, including Base and Arbitrum. Presently, all Ethereum Layer-2s manage over $55 billion worth of assets.
(Source: L2Beat)
Moreover, the improving regulatory environment in the United States could explain the stablecoin boom on Ethereum and other chains. The GENIUS Act’s enactment makes it clear for stablecoin issuers what they should comply with before rolling out their tokens.
As of September 22, the total stablecoin market stands at over $297Bn. Algorithmic stablecoins on Ethereum like USDS are also finding the much-needed traction.
(Source: Coingecko)
If Ethereum pivots away and finds a sustainable revenue path where the network generates a bulk of its fees from low-risk DeFi protocols the co-founder endorses, 
ETH ▼-6.34% could extend gains.
At press time, ETH USD is fragile after losing $4,200. Buyers must step in to contain losses of earlier today, validating the uptrend set in motion from early July. A close above $4,800 will open up Ethereum to $5,000 in the coming sessions.
On X, one analyst thinks the ETH USD uptrend remains. He notes that the second most valuable coin is within a bullish breakout, clear in the weekly chart. If Ethereum stays above $4,000, ETH USDT could easily climb to $12,000.
Don't panic.
It's just a retest. pic.twitter.com/7WFNStdJ0j
— 𝕮𝖗𝖞𝖕𝖙𝖔𝕹𝕭 (@Crypto_N_B) September 22, 2025
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The post Vitalik Says Ethereum Can’t Rely on Meme Coin Money: Ethereum Price Prediction for October 2025 appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
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