Base's Creator ecosystem strategy sparks dissatisfaction among builders, intensifying competition among Crypto chains

Coinbase’s Layer 2 network Base is facing a delicate ecological balance issue: while vigorously promoting creator tokens, it has been accused of neglecting other projects with established infrastructure. This contradiction is shaking builders’ confidence in Base and could even accelerate migration to competing chains like Solana, Sui, and others.

Creator Token Boom Drives Surface Prosperity, but Growth May Be Illusory

In August 2025, the daily minting volume of creator tokens on the Base network via the Zora platform surpassed Solana for the first time, a figure once regarded as an important indicator of Base ecosystem activity. The daily transaction volume on Base remains stable above 10 million, and on-chain activity appears thriving. However, behind this apparent prosperity lies a deeper issue: is the rapid expansion of the creator economy truly bringing healthy growth to the entire ecosystem, or is it merely focused on specific narrative storytelling?

Supporters believe that the creator token model opens new on-chain monetization channels for content creators and provides ordinary users with a cultural entry point into the crypto world. From a technical perspective, this data indeed indicates that Base’s infrastructure capacity is improving. But as the creator token wave advances, a more concerning trend is gradually emerging—the public attention and resources within the Base ecosystem are becoming extremely centralized.

Ecosystem Focus Shifts, Non-Zora Projects Feel Marginalized

On X social media, an increasing number of native Base project builders are expressing disappointment. They accuse the official Base marketing and community support policies of becoming highly selective, with Zora-related initiatives receiving priority care, while other projects that contributed significantly to Base’s early development are being neglected.

Jacek, who manages the degen token ecosystem on Base, openly expressed this frustration on social platforms. He pointed out that although degen has established an active community and liquidity base within the Base ecosystem, the official Base X account is even unwilling to follow them, let alone promote new project launches through retweets or mentions. He observed that this is not just an isolated phenomenon but a systemic issue—“if you’re not within the narrative framework that Base is wholeheartedly building, you basically don’t exist.”

This situation directly impacts builders’ enthusiasm. When degen subsequently bridges to Solana, they immediately receive direct support from the Solana official account and Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz. This stark contrast highlights the differing attitudes of various chains toward ecosystem builders.

Increasing Competition Between Crypto Chains, Rising Risk of Builder Attrition at Base

Although Base still maintains healthy transaction volume metrics in the short term, worsening community sentiment could lead to more serious consequences. Negative sentiment within the ecosystem is often a precursor to cross-chain migration. Once builders feel that resource investments on Base do not yield commensurate returns, migrating to competitors like Solana or Sui becomes a rational choice.

The challenge for Base is that it needs to sustain the new growth engine of creator tokens while ensuring that diverse projects within the ecosystem have sufficient space for survival and market recognition. The current strategy clearly falters in this balance. While the creator economy has brought a novel data story to Base, doing so at the expense of ecosystem builders’ participation may not be a sustainable trade-off.

Whether Base can adapt to this shifting community sentiment and develop more inclusive ecosystem support policies remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: if Base continues on its current path, rival blockchains ready to welcome wandering builders will be eager to accept them. This is not a good signal for any crypto ecosystem.