Crypto in 2025: Who Drives the Cryptocurrency Market and How Its Subculture Works

The cryptocurrency market in 2025 is experiencing another wave of development, and along with it, the position of the crypto enthusiast as a key participant in the ecosystem is strengthening. If in 2017-2018, a crypto enthusiast was simply a blockchain enthusiast, today they are a full-fledged member of a subculture with their own slang, code of conduct, and influence on market quotes. Let’s understand what a crypto enthusiast is in modern realities, how they shape the market, and why their actions matter to all participants.

Who is a crypto enthusiast, and where did they come from

A crypto enthusiast is not just a person who bought cryptocurrency. They are an active participant immersed in the blockchain ecosystem, involved in online communities, possessing a specific slang, and following certain behavioral rules. The word originated from “crypto” (cryptocurrency) with the addition of a Russian suffix and became widely used during the ICO boom of 2017-2018, when Bitcoin and Ethereum attracted a wave of new participants.

Over seven years, the term “crypto enthusiast” has evolved. Previously, it simply referred to someone interested in crypto; now, a crypto enthusiast is a character with their own culture, values, and mindset. In English-speaking environments, the equivalents are “crypto bro” or “NFT bro” — often used with an ironic tone to describe overly confident enthusiasts.

The language of crypto enthusiasts: slang that shapes culture

Crypto enthusiasts speak a special language where each word encodes attitudes toward the market and strategies:

HODL — from the English “hold on for dear life” (hold on tight). Originated from a typo on a forum in 2013 and became a philosophy of perseverance. When a crypto enthusiast says HODL, they declare their intention to hold their position despite downturns.

FOMO — Fear of Missing Out, the fear of missing out. This is the driving force behind impulsive decisions: seeing a rising chart, panicking that they won’t have time to profit, and buying without analysis.

FUD — Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. Spreading rumors and negative information to pressure the price. FUD is created to shock newcomers and buy their positions cheaper.

To the Moon — an expression of hope for a rapid price surge. When a crypto enthusiast posts a rocket on the chart and writes “to the moon,” it signifies belief in a multiple growth.

Shill — actively promoting a coin, often for personal interest. A crypto shiller does this professionally or for compensation.

Apeing — impulsive entry into a position without analysis. Similar to a lottery: apes in (a monkey jumps), not counting their money.

Rekt — being wiped out on the market, losing money. A state of pain and ruin.

Memes complement the slang: WAGMI (“We’re All Gonna Make It” — we will all get rich) — an anthem of optimism before a pump season; NGMI (“Not Gonna Make It” — not making it) — a verdict for the unsuccessful; Moon Bag — a portfolio reserved for “flying” tokens.

Portrait of a crypto enthusiast in 2025

A typical crypto enthusiast is a young person (18-35 years old), often with a technical or financial education, living in the digital space. Their morning begins with checking quotes on CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko, and their day is spent in Telegram channels, Discord servers, and on Twitter. They may be:

• Day traders analyzing charts on TradingView for hours
• DeFi enthusiasts testing protocols on TON and other blockchains
• Gamers earning through P2E games (Play-to-Earn)
• NFT collectors buying digital art and gaming assets
• Remote workers combining trading with their main job

Women are increasingly entering this world, especially in creative areas like metaverses and NFTs.

Crypto enthusiasts are interested in new token listings (projects like Flockerz, Best Wallet attract promises of high ROI), new blockchains (TON with VR integration — a hot topic), meme coins, and trends that become financial instruments.

Where crypto enthusiasts live and how they influence the market

Crypto enthusiasts gather in Telegram channels (“CryptoChat,” “Crypto Sandbox”), on Discord servers dedicated to DeFi and NFT, on Twitter for meme and news sharing, and on Reddit in communities like r/CryptoCurrency.

And here begins the most interesting part. Crypto enthusiasts are not just observers; they are active market manipulators:

Pump and dump — organized groups in Telegram artificially inflate the price of a coin (pump), attracting newcomers, then coordinatedly sell (dump), leaving others with losses.

Shilling — mass promotion of a token on social media to attract capital. When meme coins like CatSlap gained popularity in 2025, it was thanks to coordinated shilling.

FUD campaigns — spreading rumors and bad news to suppress the price before buying at the bottom.

These mechanisms make crypto enthusiasts both drivers of growth and destabilizers of the market. They create waves that insiders profit from, while newcomers lose.

Criticism and perception

Crypto enthusiasts are often the subject of jokes and criticism. There are memes about “NFT bro” who spends all savings on digital pictures; about those who HODL losing coins for years; about “right-clickers” who don’t understand how NFT differs from a screenshot.

For outsiders, a crypto enthusiast is associated with a financial adventurer believing in the utopia of decentralization. They are criticized for participating in schemes that harm newcomers, for blind faith in dubious projects, and for obsession with charts.

But in 2025, attitudes are softening. Major companies are beginning to integrate cryptocurrencies, regulation is becoming clearer, and crypto enthusiasts are no longer seen as oddballs. They are simply investors with a different toolset.

How to be a successful crypto enthusiast

If you decide to join this subculture, learn from those who lost money:

1. Study projects: Read whitepapers, analyze the team. Don’t buy on hype.
2. Diversify: Don’t put everything into one meme coin or NFT.
3. Use cold wallets: Ledger, Trezor — more reliable than hot wallets.
4. Check counterparties: Minimize fraud risk in P2P exchanges.
5. Follow trusted sources: CoinGecko, Crypto Banter, serious Telegram channels provide up-to-date info.

Crypto enthusiast as a cultural phenomenon

In 2025, a crypto enthusiast is not just an investor; they are a representative of a subculture that combines technological optimism, financial ambitions, and internet humor. They shape trends, move capital, and create communities where everyone can feel part of a bigger movement.

Their slang encodes strategies, their memes go mainstream, and their actions (shilling, HODL, aping) determine short-term market dynamics. A crypto enthusiast is not a profession or a title; it’s a lifestyle, a choice, and a way of interacting with technology and finance.

The crypto enthusiast subculture continues to grow, attracting new participants and adapting to changing regulatory landscapes. Stay informed of its rules if you want to not only survive but also profit in this dynamic world.