Bitcoin Steady at $62K, Pepe Soars to New Heights, GameStop Rally Continues

By Lars Weer Last updated May 15, 2024

The crypto market experienced minimal fluctuation in the last 24 hours, with notable exceptions in meme coins, which saw considerable gains.
Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a modest increase of just over 1%, while ether (ETH) decreased by 0.5%, and BNB Chain’s BNB alongside Solana’s SOL both dropped by up to 3%, as per data from CoinGecko.

Over the past day, cryptocurrency values remained relatively stable, except for certain meme coins that delivered substantial returns, influenced by the ramifications of GameStop’s (GME) stock price surge earlier this week.

Bitcoin (BTC) saw a minor gain of just over 1%, with ether (ETH) losing 0.5%. BNB Chain’s BNB and Solana’s SOL both witnessed declines of up to 3% within the same timeframe, according to CoinGecko statistics. The CoinDesk 20, which tracks the major tokens excluding stablecoins, showed a slight drop of 0.17%.

The dog-themed token floki (FLOKI) experienced a 12% rise, leading among the top 50 tokens by market capitalization, while pepe (PEPE) climbed 5%, reaching a new all-time high.

The rally in meme tokens commenced earlier in the week following Keith Gill’s first post on X (formerly Twitter) since 2021, which invigorated traders’ willingness to take risks. Gill, primarily known for his involvement in the 2021 GameStop stock surge, significantly impacted the market sentiment.

A seemingly simple picture posted by Gill propelled GameStop’s stock nearly doubling its value on Monday, even amidst multiple trading halts, despite the fact that Gill did not mention the company explicitly. However, this surge showed signs of diminishing, as the stock dropped by 13% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.

Reports suggest that traders anticipated Gill’s influence might trigger rallies in both meme stocks and tokens.

Various cat-themed tokens, associated with Gill’s online persona @TheRoaringKitty, and other prominent meme coins have surged as much as 50% in recent days. A joke token based on GameStop (GME) on the Solana blockchain reached a market capitalization of $100 million earlier on Wednesday, marking an increase of over 700% within the past week.

In contrast, despite the surge in meme coins, many traders feel that the broader market for bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies appears weak.

Alex Kuptsikevich, a senior market analyst at FxPro, remarked in an email, “The mania around memes in equities, the overall positive sentiment in stock indexes, and a weakening dollar don’t seem to be benefiting cryptocurrencies at this moment.”