In an exhilarating turn of events, meme coins are throwing a massive party on the crypto scene. Triggered by Bitcoin’s dazzling breakout beyond $30,000, the mood across the crypto-market has morphed into a wave of positivity, infusing fresh energy into the meme coin universe.
Stealing the limelight is Pepecoin (PEPE), flaunting a jaw-dropping 80% rise this week, and leading the meme coin squadron that includes other hot favorites – Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and Floki Inu (FLOKI), each of which have soared double digits.
Popping the champagne are DOGE, SHIB, and FLOKI with respective rises of 11.2%, 25.6%, and 30.9% over the week, according to CoinGecko data.
This turbo-charged momentum has turbo-boosted the meme coin market cap by 11% in a day, outpacing the total crypto market cap growth of 4.2% by more than double.
The PEPE price trajectory indicates a significant chunk of this meteoric ascent occurred on June 21, possibly riding on Bitcoin’s strong bullish gusts over the $30,000 mark. At the time of writing, PEPE is trading at $0.00000151.
In addition to Bitcoin’s rally, hints dropped by new crypto exchanges about a potential PEPE listing may have further propelled the token’s upward journey.
In parallel, Shiba Inu creators unveiled Shibacals, an innovative protocol that designates real-world objects as NFTs, likely adding an extra shot of positivity to the dog-themed meme coin. To digitally authenticate tangible items on the Shibarium blockchain, Shibacals utilizes Near Field Communication (NFC) chips, which allow wireless connection over short distances.
Shibacals’ ability to generate a tag for real-world merchandise, such as a T-shirt, and associate it with a user’s NFT collection adds another layer of authentication. By verifying these tags on the blockchain during resales, buyers can distinguish original goods from replicas.
Shytoshi Kusama, the lead developer, revealed that Shibacals, or “Authenticated Collectibles,” as they’re fondly called, employ NFC to validate physical items, potentially enhancing their value. He also added that Shibacals tags could verify products on any blockchain, not just the Shibarium ecosystem.
The Shibarium platform is an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain that utilizes SHIB, Bone (BONE), and Leash (LEASE) tokens for ecosystem development.
Moreover, the Crypto Fear & Greed index recorded a sharp climb over the past couple of days, hitting two-month highs of 65 – a clear sign of a bullish sentiment uprising.
As of Thursday, the total cryptocurrency market cap climbed to $1.22 trillion, rebounding from June’s losses following legal actions by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission against US based crypto exchanges.
Meme coins 101
Meme coins are a unique genre of cryptocurrencies that are typically built around popular internet memes or trending social themes. They started as humorous or satirical tokens, but have quickly carved out a significant niche in the crypto world. Although they initially lacked a functional use case, many of these digital currencies, like PEPE, Dogecoin or Shiba Inu, have grown beyond their meme origins to foster robust communities and develop substantial market values, thanks to being listed on the largest crypto exchanges like Gate.io. These digital assets offer a fun and accessible entry point for crypto novices and signify the crypto-community’s playful side. However, it’s important to remember that, like all investments, meme coins come with their share of risk, and potential investors should always conduct thorough research before diving into the meme coin wave.
Pepe 101
Pepe Coin is a cryptocurrency based on an internet meme, and it’s described by its official Twitter account as the “most memeable memecoin in existence”. Launched in mid-April 2023, Pepe Coin is an example of a memecoin, which are usually popularized and promoted by influencers or major figures in the space. These types of coins have drawn both investor attention and criticism over a perceived lack of seriousness, but the potential for investors to score big with memecoins is nonetheless real.
Like several other tokens based on the Pepe the Frog meme, Pepe Coin does not have an official connection with Furie or the original cartoon character. Notably, the circulating supply of Pepe Coin tokens is 420 million, a clear nod to cannabis culture’s “4/20” reference.
The token gained quick prominence soon after its launch due to a high-profile purchase that captivated the cryptocurrency community on Twitter. An investor swapped 0.125 ETH (worth about $250 at the time) for a whopping 5.9 trillion PEPE tokens. However, the investor who bought those 5.9 trillion tokens may have a difficult time selling them at the current price, given PEPE’s relatively low liquidity pool.
The future of PEPE remains unclear. Memecoins are huge parts of the crypto trading landscape and it’s likely that more will continue to emerge. PEPE may follow the fate of many memecoins that have faded from public view in a short time but for the time being it seems that PEPE and other representatives of the fun part of the crypto world, are as active as they could possibly be. Onwards to a brighter future!