Pope-Inspired Meme Coin Surges, Crashes, And Sparks Frenzy After Sudden Vatican Shift

By: bitcoin ethereum news|2025/05/04 11:15:01
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After listings on many exchanges, POPE Coin spiked thousands of percent, only to drop drastically afterward, leaving some traders with heavy losses. The project says it is in support of the Catholic Church. LUCE and POPE tokens relating to papal succession narratives were lifted by meme coin speculation fuelled by Pope Francis’s death. Just hours after Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025, the launch of POPE Coin sparked speculation. Following the news, Gate.io and MEXC pounced to list the token, amplifying its rise so much that the token’s market cap even briefly peaked above $300 million. The hype was short-lived. CoinGecko’s data was removed, and CoinMarketCap reported its value as much lower at approximately $260,930. According to Lookonchain, a trader who attempted to profit from the pump lost $111,000 in 5 minutes. Another unidentified wallet dumped tokens for a quick million-dollar profit, igniting accusations of insider behavior. According to the coin’s website, this is “in support of the Pope and the Catholic Church,” adding that 35% of the coin’s max supply of 1 billion had been reserved for the Church. Out of 100 million tokens, public trading received 100 million, while 25% went to creators and marketing. The project’s slogan, “a meme coin so holy, it blesses every transaction,” fueled social media buzz. The Papal Context and Crypto Speculation The hype surrounding POPE tokens came after the historic occurrence of Pope Frank’s death. Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who was born, died on April 21, 2025, aged 88. His papacy spanned a decade, focusing on social justice, the environment, and outreach to a global audience. He became the first pope from Latin America and the first Jesuit to hold the post. The frenzy also stretched to the crypto space, as prediction platform Polymarket hosted bets on who would become the next Pope. Pietro Parolin secured nearly 30% of the votes and was followed by Luis Antonio Tagle, then Matteo Zuppi. Alongside these bets, two trending tokens, POPE and LUCE, saw huge volatility. POPE surged by 770% before collapsing. The LUCE Coin surged by 134% to $0.025 before the correction to $0.015. While the excitement is speculative, the Catholic Church has yet to issue any official statement regarding any affiliation with these coins. This news comes as President Donald Trump’s controversial memecoin has gained traction. His campaign also promised a White House dinner and tour for top TRUMP Coin holders on April 23. The move drew criticism from Republican Senators Cynthia Lummis and Lisa Murkowski. Lummis said giving access in exchange for financial contributions was inappropriate, while Murkowski said she would never charge constituents for Capitol access. Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff went further, calling for President Trump’s impeachment for what he said was selling access for what are, effectively, payments directly to him. TRUMP Coin sparked concerns among ethics experts that it offers ways for foreign influence and direct funding of Trump himself. Brenda is a writer with three years of experience specializing in cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. She graduated from the University of Mombasa with a degree in Psychology. She has worked at Cryptopolitan and Blockchain Reporter. Source: https://blockchainreporter.net/pope-inspired-meme-coin-surges-crashes/

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DDC Enterprise Limited Announces 2025 Unaudited Preliminary Financial Performance: Record Revenue Achieved, Bitcoin Treasury Grows to 2183 Coins

On March 4, 2026, DDC Enterprise Limited (NYSE American: DDC) today announced preliminary, unaudited full-year financial performance for the year ended December 31, 2025. The company expects to achieve record revenue and record positive adjusted EBITDA, primarily driven by continued growth in its core consumer food business and overall margin improvement. The final audited financial report is expected to be released in mid-April 2026.


2025 Full-Year Financial Highlights


Revenue: Expected to be between $39 million and $41 million, reaching a new company high.


Organic Growth: Excluding the impact of the company's strategic contraction of its U.S. operations, core revenue is expected to grow 11% to 17% year over year.


Gross Profit Margin: Expected to be between 28% and 30%, reflecting continued operational efficiency improvements.


Adjusted EBITDA: The company expects to achieve a positive full-year result in 2025, a significant improvement from a $3.5 million loss in 2024, mainly due to rigorous cost controls and a higher-margin sales mix.


Core Consumer Food Business Performance


In 2025, DDC's core consumer food business maintained strong operational performance.


The company also disclosed Core Consumer Food Business Adjusted EBITDA, a metric that further excludes costs related to its Bitcoin reserve strategy and non-cash fair value adjustments related to its Bitcoin holdings from adjusted EBITDA to more accurately reflect the core business performance.


In 2025, Core Consumer Food Business Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be between $5.5 million and $6 million.


Bitcoin Reserve Update


In the first half of 2025, DDC initiated a long-term Bitcoin accumulation strategy, holding Bitcoin as its primary reserve asset.


As of December 31, 2025: The company holds 1,183 BTC.


As of February 28, 2026: Holdings increased to 2,118 BTC


Today's additional purchase of 65 BTC brings the company's total holdings to 2,183 BTC


DDC Founder, Chairman, and CEO Norma Chu stated, "We are proud to have closed 2025 with record revenue and positive adjusted EBITDA, demonstrating the steady growth of the company's consumer food business and the ongoing improvement in profitability. We are building a disciplined, growth-oriented food platform and strategically allocating capital to Bitcoin assets with a long-term view, aligning with our core beliefs. We believe that this dual-track model of 'Steady Consumer Business + Strategic Bitcoin Reserve' will help DDC create lasting long-term value for shareholders."


Adjusted EBITDA Definition
For the full year 2025, the company defines "Adjusted EBITDA" (a non-GAAP financial measure) as: Net income / (loss) excluding the following items:· Interest expense· Taxes· Foreign exchange gains/losses· Long-lived asset impairment· Depreciation and amortization· Non-cash fair value changes related to financial instruments (including Bitcoin holdings)· Stock-based compensation


About DDC Enterprise Limited


DDC Enterprise Limited (NYSE: DDC) is actively implementing its corporate Bitcoin Treasury strategy while continuing to strengthen its position as a leading global Asian food platform.


The company has established Bitcoin as a core reserve asset and is executing a prudent, long-oriented accumulation strategy. While expanding its portfolio of food brands, DDC is gradually becoming one of the public company pioneers in integrating Bitcoin into its corporate financial architecture.


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