Unofficial Catholic Meme Coin LUCE Surges as Bettors Wager On Next Pope

It might be against the religion's teachings, but it looks like there's no stopping crypto degens and bettors from moving on the news.

The death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday sparked a flurry of activity in crypto markets and prediction platforms, as traders and bettors sought to profit on the news.

LUCE, a Solana-based meme coin named after the cartoon mascot for the Vatican's upcoming Holy Year 2025, has jumped about 45% on the day, according to CoinGecko data.

The token is trading at $0.013 and has seen its daily trading volume surge to $60.27 million from $5 million the day before news of the pontiff's demise hit headlines worldwide. 

Despite a warning that it is unaffiliated and unofficial, LUCE has attracted approximately 44,800 holders. It still remains down by about 95% from its November peak of $0.30.

The chart shows a sharp decline of 74% around April 19, before a meeting with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, 20 hours before news of the pope's death emerged.

In the Roman Catholic tradition, when a pope dies or resigns, cardinals gather to elect the successor through a secret ballot, known as a papal conclave.

As a result, betting markets have launched around the prospects of papal succession. On Myriad Markets, operated by Decrypt’s parent company Dastan, punters have placed Italy's Cardinal Pietro Parolin in the lead with a 37% probability.

This is followed by the Philippines' Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle at 27%, with more betting on unnamed others at 34%.

The conclave will be convened within the next three weeks to choose the next leader of the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church.

Born in Argentina, Jorge Mario Bergoglio took the papal name Francis in 2013 when he was elected, becoming the first non-European pope in about 1,300 years.

The young Bergoglio worked as a bouncer at a nightclub in Buenos Aires. At age 36, he led Argentina’s Jesuit congregation. He died at 88 following a stroke and cardiovascular collapse.

Bergoglio had been a vocal critic of technological excesses during his papacy.

In late 2023, he described artificial intelligence as "the highest-stakes gamble of our future" and urged that it be developed to "serve humanity's best potential."

Last year, Bergoglio denounced the use of AI in war, saying: "No machine should ever choose to take the life of a human being."

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair

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