- Pepe devs have implemented a reduction in multi-sig requirements.
- The devs have sold a significant quantity of PEPE tokens.
- Memecoins are susceptible to extreme volatility.
Memecoins often cultivate devoted online communities that enjoy participating in the entertainment value on offer. Nonetheless, memecoins are susceptible to erratic price movements. Following a recent change in multi-sig requirements, Pepe has become the latest memecoin to suffer extreme price volatility.
Pepe Price Plunges
As noted by Tree News worker CryptoNoddy, the Pepe multi-sig wallet was recently updated to reduce the number of people required to execute transactions from eight signatures to just two. CryptoNoddy commented that “some” PEPE tokens have since left devs’ ”CEX wallet” en route to exchanges.
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Following up with some on-chain sleuthing, Solidity developer “Kenobi” warned that 16 trillion PEPE tokens had left the multi-sig wallet, with more than half, at 8.5 trillion, sold on the OKX exchange. A balance of 10 trillion remains in the wallet at the time of writing.
Given the security implications of reducing authorized signatories and the subsequent exchange inflows of significant quantities of PEPE tokens, speculation is running rampant on what is happening behind the scenes.
In response, Pepe has suffered a 20.4% drop in value over the last 24 hours, down to $0.000000874939 at the time of writing. The new price point marks a nine-week low, per CoinGecko, a stark contrast to the project’s early days, which saw Pepe’s market cap peak at $1.5 billion just three weeks after launching. At press time, the meme coin’s market cap is $367.4 million – equating to a 76% drawdown.
Memecoins With Use
Memecoins hold alluring potential for outsized returns, but the general lack of real-world utility underpinning their value makes memecoin investing highly speculative. Furthermore, the memecoin niche is susceptible to rug pulls. Recent examples include BALD, which netted the rugpuller $5 million, and mods on the WallStreetBets subReddit pulling off a similar scheme in May.
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Nonetheless, fighting to legitimize memecoins, late 2021 saw the Dogecoin Founder set out to reinvent the project with a focus on utility, including pushing DOGE as a payment token. Similarly, Shiba Inu recently teased the relaunch of its Shibarium Layer-2 platform, designed to transform the memecoin into an expansive ecosystem containing a decentralized exchange, a metaverse, and a capacity for blockchain gaming.
On the Flipside
- Pepe developers have yet to communicate the reasoning for the multi-sig change.
- The Pepe community fought back against associations with alt-right symbolism.
Why This Matters
The shifting strategies of memecoin devs, alongside their opaque intentions, make the threat of rug pulls an ever-present threat.
Discover more about Pepe and how to be safe with memecoins investing here:
PEPE Coin Case Study: How to Stay Safe in Meme Coin Mania
Former Worldcoin employee sounds the alarm. Read more here:
