The popular meme coin PEPE has recently come under the spotlight for its significant whaling activity that has many investors worried about its future. Major holders of PEPE tokens have sold their holdings at a loss, leading to greater market uncertainty.
A recent report notes that the price movements of the meme coin are heavily influenced by its presence in the social sector. However, over the past week, social activity around PEPE has seen a notable downturn, with social engagement down 28% and social mentions down 18%.
Whale Exodus: Huge PEPE Transfers Raise Eyebrows
Lookonchain, a blockchain analytics platform, sheds light on a puzzling development when it emerged that three wallets, possibly controlled by the same person, had transferred as much as 1.5 trillion PEPE tokens to popular cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
An hour ago, 3 wallets (probably the same person) deposited 1.5T $PEPE ($1.2 million). #Binance with a loss of $242,000.
These 3 wallets raised 1.5T $PEPE($1.45 million at the time) from #OKX after the Pepe team dumped 16T $PEPE on August 24. pic.twitter.com/StKCuGMGFZ
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) September 6, 2023
At current exchange rates, these tokens are valued at approximately $1.2 million. What raises eyebrows is the fact that these wallets sold their tokens at a lower price than when they initially bought them, resulting in a collective loss of $242,000.
This massive transfer followed an unexpected $16 trillion PEPE transaction on August 24, where the tokens were worth a whopping $1.45 million.
Official answer: ‘Ex-team members’ charged with theft
According to a separate reportthe team behind PEPE issued a statement claiming that “three ex-team members” had accessed the project’s multisig wallet without the consent of others and absconded with a significant amount of 16 trillion PEPE tokens.
This revelation sent shockwaves through the community and further fueled the uncertainty surrounding the meme coin.
While the recent decline in social activity and questionable whale trades have cast a shadow over PEPE’s future, there is an intriguing aspect to the data. Despite the reduced social engagement, weighted sentiment around the memecoin has continued to grow.
This suggests that at the time of writing, there are more positive comments and sentiments surrounding PEPE than negative ones, possibly indicating resilience within the community.
According to the latest data available, PEPE is trading at $0.000000801962 according to Mint gecko, with a modest gain of 0.5% in the past 24 hours. However, over the past seven days, it has experienced a 6.5% drop in value.
Investors and enthusiasts are now closely monitoring the situation, hoping to bring clarity and stability back to the PEPE ecosystem. The future of the meme coin hangs in uncertainty as the crypto community looks forward to further developments and the resolution of the alleged theft involving the 16 trillion PEPE tokens.
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