What is Bonk (BONK)?

Bonk Coin is a meme coin that will be launched in late 2022 and will run on the Solana network. In other words, it falls into the category of meme coins that are more fun, community-oriented and spread rapidly on social media rather than “serious” projects in the classical sense. Solana is a blockchain network known in the crypto world for its ability to process tens of thousands of transactions per second and its very low transaction fees. With its fast and cost-effective structure, it offers an infrastructure preferred especially by user-friendly projects. When we compare Bonk to other popular meme coins like Dogecoin or Shiba Inu, we can see some similarities; all of them are fueled by internet culture, community power and plenty of humor.

Currently, Bonk's price is hovering around $0.000020. Yes, it may not sound like a big number, but in the crypto world, zeros don't really matter - it's all about potential and the community behind it. And that's where Bonk stands out: as part of a fast-growing, highly engaged community, it's making waves, especially in the Solana ecosystem. In this comprehensive guide, we will specifically answer questions such as “what is bonk coin?”, “when did bonk token come out?” and “who founded bonk coin?”.

Definition and Emergence of Bonk

In the crypto world, a new coin appears every day, but some of them go beyond being just a “token” and manage to capture the hearts of the community. Bonk is exactly this kind of project. So what is BONK? Born in late 2022 on the Solana blockchain, Bonk (BONK) looks at first glance like a classic meme coin with a fun dog mascot. But when you dig a little deeper, you realize that there's a remarkable story behind it.

Bonk is the first dog-themed meme coin on the Solana network. It sometimes comes up in searches for Solana meme coins. Therefore, it is also known with the questions “What is Bonk Solana”. Yes, it may have originated similar to other popular meme coins like Dogecoin or Shiba Inu, but being based on Solana gives it some nice advantages like speed and low transaction costs. The project's motto is also quite sympathetic: “A coin for everyone, made by everyone.” So there are no big investors or giant corporations behind this coin. On the contrary, it has a user-oriented structure that appeals directly to the community.

Bonk's birthday December 25, 2022

Bonk's official launch took place on December 25, 2022. So, on Christmas Day, BONK coin came on the scene with an airdrop. During this event, exactly half of the total supply (yes, that's right, 50%) was distributed for free to users in the Solana ecosystem. These users included many different groups, such as NFT collectors, DeFi developers, artists, and individual investors. So the coin started with an inclusive spirit from the very beginning.

In fact, the timing of Bonk's debut is significant: It came right after the big crash of FTX in November 2022. The Solana ecosystem was severely affected by this crisis and people were looking for trust. Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX who was sentenced to 25 years in prison after the stock market crash, was one of Solana's most vocal defenders. In addition, Alameda Research, the trading arm of FTX, had invested in Solana Labs' initial coin offering (ICO) and was known to hold around $1.2 billion worth of SOL tokens when questions arose about the company's financial health. This raised concerns that projects could exit the Solana ecosystem in the wake of the FTX scandal. At the time, Solana fell to single-digit price levels for the first time in years.

It was at this point that Bonk came on the scene and became a source of morale. It aimed to send a message to users: “This system is not just for the big players, it's ours too.” Thanks to its structure that emphasizes decentralization, it attracted attention in a short time. When you take a look at Bonk's technical documents, you see that the project does not have any VC (venture capital) oriented structure. In other words, there are no big investment funds, no minorities getting rich through pre-sales. Everything is prepared with the principle of “fair distribution”. The project aims to grow entirely with the community and this is where the claim of being “everyone's coin” comes from.

In this way, Bonk combines the energy of Dogecoin with the technological infrastructure of Solana. This is why it is often referred to as “Solana's Dogecoin” in the crypto world. But of course, technical differences come into play here: Bonk has the advantage of Solana's high transaction speed and low fees, which makes it especially appealing to a new generation of users.

Bonk's History: Key Milestones

Bonk's story begins in late 2022. On December 25, 2022, a massive airdrop took place and half of the total supply, 50 trillion BONK tokens, were distributed to the Solana community. This was not just an ordinary distribution; it was like a Christmas gift. BONK tokens reached many people, from NFT artists to developers, from investors to active users who are dedicated to the project. As such, Bonk quickly went under the radar and became a project that everyone was talking about.

• 2023 - Solana's apple of Solana's eye: Entering 2023, Bonk had the wind at its back. It quickly gained acceptance within the Solana ecosystem, even some NFT marketplaces (e.g. OpenBook and Orca) started accepting payments with BONK. Users could earn BONK as a reward for staking NFTs on platforms like SolFarm and BonkStake. Solana wallet stars Phantom and Solflare also added Bonk to their support list. Not only that, BONK trading pairs were opened on decentralized exchanges such as Raydium and BonkSwap. All of these developments have meant an expansion of the use cases for Bonk coin, moving it from being a meme coin that people keep in their wallets just to “try it out”.
• March 2023 - Bonk goes mobile: In the first quarter of the year, Solana's “Saga” smartphone burst onto the scene, and Bonk found its place there as well. In March 2023, a special BONK airdrop was organized for those who bought a Saga phone. So not only did you get a Solana phone, but you also won BONK tokens on top of it, what more could you ask for! Thanks to this campaign, Bonk reached a wider audience and made a lot of noise on social media.
• It attracted the attention of big players and exchange listings: The rise was not limited to the Bonk Solana integration. Throughout 2023, one by one, major centralized exchanges began listing Bonk. Starting in December 2022, Coinbase and Binance led the wave of listings, followed by Kraken, KuCoin, OKX, Crypto.com and Bybit. Thus, BONK became a token accessible not only to Solana users but also to global crypto investors.
• 2024 - Bonk is everywhere: By 2024, things were well on track for Bonk. Becoming the most popular memecoin in the Solana ecosystem, Bonk became even stronger with numerous integrations. According to CoinDesk, the number of wallets holding Bonk had already exceeded 750,000, with more than 150 integrations. In the meantime, the Bonk DAO was not idle; they decided to burn trillions of tokens to reduce supply. This deflationary move gained the support of the community and contributed to the sustainability of the project in the long run. Bonk was no longer just a “joke” coin; it became a serious asset used in many areas from staking to NFT payments. It's also worth noting that wrapped versions of Bonk are compatible with 9 different blockchain networks, including Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain. In other words, it is not limited to Solana, but has become a globally accessible memecoin with cross-chain support.

Bonk's journey is a good example of how a meme coin can quickly gain mass traction. The post-launch price action has been just as dramatic: According to CoinMarketCap, in January 2023, the price of BONK increased by over 2000%. Of course, this surge didn't last forever; prices corrected at some point and much of the initial surge was given back. Despite these ups and downs, the community kept faith in the project and burned 5 trillion BONK tokens, aiming to create a more balanced market environment. As of April 2025, BONK is trading at $0.000019. It is 67 percent below its all-time high of $0.000059 on November 20, 2024. However, it is 21 thousand percent above its all-time low on December 30, 2022.

Why is Bonk valuable?

As a result, BONK is firmly entrenched in the Solana ecosystem. So what makes Bonk so special? Here are a few things that solidify BONK's value:

• It's a community-driven project: Bonk has been community-driven from the start, with individual investors. There are no giant investors behind it, nor are any tokens allocated to institutional hands. The development team is completely anonymous, yet active. Everything is open-source; transparency is at the forefront, from code to documentation. The decision-making processes are carried out through the Bonk DAO. This means that anyone holding BONK can contribute to the governance of the project. This makes it not just another memecoin. At launch, half of the total supply - exactly 50 trillion BONK - was distributed to the community through an airdrop. As such, the project started with the motto of “equal sharing” from the beginning.
• The first and largest meme coin of the Solana ecosystem: Bonk is the first dog-themed coin born on the Solana network, and it quickly reached a massive audience. Thanks to Solana's already “lightning-fast” structure, BONK transfers are instantaneous and cost almost nothing. This gives Bonk an advantage in terms of both ease of use and accessibility.
• Bonk is not just a joke, it is also very easy to use: BONK is not just a joke. It is accepted as a means of payment in NFT projects, staked in some games, traded on DeFi platforms. For example, you can use BONK on platforms like Orca and OpenBook. Players make the effort to stake BONK to earn rewards. This staking takes place on platforms like BonkSwap. NFT enthusiasts also use BONK to trade their collectibles. So it's not just a “coin with a funny dog”; it's a project that has real uses and adds value to the ecosystem. You can see the BONK NFT projects and game projects below:

• Widespread ownership with an airdrop strategy: The big airdrop that accompanied Bonk's launch created a lot of buzz. More than 400,000 wallets received the tokens for free, which eventually grew to 750,000 different wallets. The community's activity is also visible on social media, with memes, witty posts and Bonk-specific events keeping the culture alive. This makes the project stand out with its community spirit rather than its technical aspects.

• It is one of the truly decentralized crypto projects: One of the most striking aspects of Bonk is that there is no visible power behind it. Everything is open to the community, the development team is anonymous, but the process is trustworthy. The funds under the control of the Bonk DAO are used directly for the benefit of the community, whether to support liquidity or to fund new projects. This answers the question of what Bonk coin does. Community-driven, Bonk presents a different image from traditional crypto projects in terms of the structure it uses. The public distribution of most of its supply and its transparent management can reassure new participants. However, like any meme coin, Bonk is a speculative asset with high risk for investors. Since many meme coins can rise and fall rapidly on social media, careful research should be done before investing.

Who is the Founder of Bonk?

Born on the Solana network, this fun and community crypto is notable both for its anonymity and its decentralized structure. So who are the founders of Bonk? Is it really a community effort? Let's take a look behind the scenes of this mysterious beginning.

The team behind Bonk, just like many meme coins, is completely anonymous. There is no name, no familiar face. It's not clear who started the project, and the development team has not put itself in the foreground. In fact, such mysterious beginnings are now commonplace in the meme coin universe. Still, some rumors suggest that some of the projects we've heard of in the Solana ecosystem may be behind Bonk. But of course this is just speculation; there is no official announcement and no confirmed company name.

Community spirit at the forefront

Bonk is a “community effort”. It is a project that came out of the Solana developer community, away from centralized financial support and adhering to the principle of fair distribution. From day one, its direction has been shaped by community input. In fact, the project's whitepaper explicitly states that it aims to provide a fair and participatory alternative to traditional VC tokens. In other words, “everyone benefits, not just a handful of investors”.

This is one of the most striking aspects of Bonk: No private investors or institutional players were allocated a special share in the project. Everything has been done through airdrops and transparent distribution mechanisms from within the community, so there is no secret funding or private sales going on behind the scenes. All stages can be tracked step by step on the blockchain. In this respect, Bonk is one of the exemplary projects that, according to many, does decentralization justice.

Bonk's development process is completely open-source. This means that anyone can review and contribute to the code. In addition, 15% of the token supply is allocated to the Bonk DAO (community treasury). What does this mean? Decision-making processes are open to community members; anyone can make suggestions and vote. This budget allocated through the DAO is also used for various purposes such as contributing to liquidity and supporting community projects. So decisions don't come from the top, they come from the grassroots.

The Bonk community usually meets online, on social media, Discord, etc. No one makes decisions in mysterious offices, everything is discussed openly. The development process is shaped and progresses entirely through this community communication.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Below, we have compiled frequently asked questions and answers about BONK, Solana's Dogecoin.

• What is Bonk Coin and how does it work? Bonk is a dog-themed meme coin running on the Solana blockchain. It is inspired by meme coins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, but uses a faster and lower-fee network. Managed by the community, Bonk was first distributed through a large airdrop and processes transactions through simple token transfers. There is no centralized administrator; transactions are quickly confirmed by Solana's proof-of-history mechanism.
• When did Bonk launch and who launched it? The Bonk token was officially launched on December 25, 2022. During its launch, tokens were distributed to the Solana community in a free airdrop. The project was launched by an anonymous team and its main goal was to motivate Solana users after the collapse of the FTX exchange.
• How is the BONK token supply and distribution: The total supply of the BONK token is set at approximately 100 trillion (approximately 88.9 trillion in circulation). At launch, 50% of the total supply (around 50 trillion) was distributed to community members via airdrop. Some of the remaining tokens were allocated to the Bonk DAO treasury, liquidity pools and community funds. This high supply structure contributes to the BONK coin price being very low on a per unit basis.
• Is Bonk coin suitable for investment: Bonk is a high-risk speculative meme coin. Its market volatility is high and its price can experience large swings. Caution is recommended for new crypto investors. The general advice is to view Bonk as a recreational or short-term high-risk investment; it is risky to consider it as a long-term store of value. Memecoins are generally volatile, although supported by strong communities.
• Where to buy and how to store Bonk: BONK tokens are available on major centralized crypto exchanges such as Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, KuCoin, Bybit and OKX. There are also trading pairs on DEXs such as Raydium, Orca or BonkSwap on the Solana network. Bonk tokens can be stored in Solana-compatible wallets such as Phantom, Solflare or Exodus. Hardware wallets such as Ledger can also be used for secure storage.
• Can Bonk be used outside the Solana network: Bonk's main use case is on the Solana network, but there are also wrapped versions on other chains such as Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain. This means that the Bonk token can be traded in ERC-20 or BEP-20 form on other networks. However, direct Bonk transfers only take place on the Solana network. Wrapped versions allow Bonk to be liquidated and traded on other chains.

Follow our JR Kripto Guide series to discover Bonk and other meme coin projects on Solana!