Base creator coin push draws backlash after Nick Shirley launch

Coinbase-backed Base is facing criticism after a creator coin launched by YouTuber Nick Shirley failed to sustain momentum.

Shirley’s token on creator platform Zora briefly reached a fully diluted valuation of about $9 million before falling to roughly $3 million.

Trading activity was largely driven by existing crypto traders rather than new onchain participants.

The outcome has raised doubts about Base’s ability to convert viral social media moments into lasting onchain engagement.

If there was ever a time that these creator coins were going to work, it was Nick Shirley right here, right now.

notthreadguy said.

He added that demand for content coins appears limited to speculative traders rather than genuine users.

Other Zora-linked launches on Base have shown similar boom-and-bust patterns with little evidence of long-term demand.

The backlash comes as Base positions itself as a decentralised social platform through SocialFi experiments.

Earlier platforms such as Friend.tech saw daily active users peak near 80,000 before declining sharply.

Developers have voiced frustration over perceived favouritism tied to promoted creator coins and internal team tokens.

If you’re not part of the favoured narrative, you effectively don’t exist.

One Base builder said.

Critics argue retail users are left exposed when liquidity disappears after initial hype fades.

Coinbase chief executive Brian Armstrong said he has engaged with critics and gathered feedback on improving the strategy.