Changes to the airdrop of the new Polkadot-based memecoin DOT is $DED (DED) have generated widespread community criticism after the initial allocation was reduced.

The initial airdrop allocation was reduced from 100% of the token supply to just 5% to create a longer financial runway for the memecoin, explained one of its pseudonymous developers, Giotto De Filippi, during a March 24 X Spaces:

“Once you distribute 100%, you run out of ammunition… Because the voters were not willing to fund the project, it makes more sense to distribute less, and the rest of the tokens can be used to finance the project.”

DED started trending on X on March 23 after members of the Polkadot community spun up the memecoin in an effort to capitalize on the memecoin frenzy and bring more attention to the Polkadot ecosystem. Investors holding Polkadot (DOT) were eligible for 36 DED tokens for every 1 DOT held.

Retail sentiment turned sour after the team reduced the initial airdrop allocation. Pseudonymous crypto investor Orlando took to X to voice his concerns in a March 23 post:

“Like everyone else, I’m disappointed with how the DED situation unfolded. The treasury spent money, and many people recently bought and held DOT, driven by the excitement around this experimental DED memecoin. I hope the team will find ways to compensate holders for these mistakes in the long term.”

Over 85% of the DED airdrop supply has already been claimed with over 1.3 million eligible addresses, according to Dune data. Unlike other popular memecoins, DED’s airdropped supply is frozen until future exchange listings to reduce sell pressure.

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Memecoin frenzy continues

The launch of the Polkadot-based token comes during a period of increased retail interest in memecoins. Last week, Book of Meme (BOME) rose over 1,100% on the weekly chart, briefly becoming the 130th-largest token by market capitalization.

BOME is part of a series of new memecoins that raised money for unreleased coins through a controversial presale model. Presales for these Solana-based memecoins raised over $100 million worth of Solana’s (SOL) token in the three days leading up to March 18.

Other blockchain networks are also trying to capitalize on the frenzy. On March 21, the Avalanche Foundation announced a $1 million liquidity mining incentive program for Avalanche-native memecoins and community-owned tokens.

Related: Solana to outpace Ethereum in consumer applications — Former head of growth