Base Meme Coin will not be "pumped"? Jesse Pollak openly states that manipulating prices may be illegal

January 27 News, regarding the controversy over market manipulation, Meme coins, and whether there is “internal support,” has recently heated up again on the Layer 2 network Base. Jesse Pollak, founder of Base, spoke out on social media, explicitly rejecting calls within the community for the official to fund “pump” certain tokens, and directly stating that such behavior could potentially cross legal boundaries.

Jesse Pollak stated that the core team of Base will not manipulate price charts behind the scenes, nor will they coordinate privately or use funds to influence the trend of any asset. He pointed out that doing so would not only harm fair competition among other projects but also undermine the trust foundation of the entire ecosystem and conflict with compliance requirements under the US regulatory environment. While Base will continue to optimize the exposure and distribution of applications and assets within its ecosystem, price discovery must be left to the market to naturally determine.

Behind the controversy is some traders’ disappointment over the lack of “flagship” tokens on Base. Some active users believe that the network has yet to produce a super project capable of attracting long-term speculative capital, making it difficult to stand out in the Meme coin craze. Others counter that this is not an issue unique to Base, but rather a reflection of the current crypto market being dominated by short-term sentiment, where rapid rises and falls have become the norm.

In response, Jesse Pollak acknowledged the community’s frustration but emphasized that manipulating prices would only cause deeper harm. He distinguished between “promotion” and “manipulation,” believing that transparent incentive mechanisms, such as competitions or clear liquidity plans, can be discussed, but secret pump-and-dump schemes run counter to Base’s positioning as an open infrastructure.

This discussion also brings to mind the 2025 meme token wave, when an experiment with tokenization by the official Base account sparked significant controversy and intensified external doubts about the platform’s tolerance for speculation. The low-cost, high-speed on-chain environment makes it easier for pump-and-dump schemes and malicious contracts to flourish, posing considerable risks to retail investors.

Overall, Jesse Pollak’s latest statement aims to draw a clear line between Base and market manipulation, while setting the tone for a more regulated and transparent token ecosystem. This will also influence the future development path of Base Meme coins and application assets.