PEPE Surges 11% as Whale Investments Fuel Meme Coin Rally

PEPE, a frog-themed meme coin, has experienced a significant surge in value, rising by 11% in the past 24 hours. This increase has outpaced other leading meme assets such as Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB), which saw modest gains of 3% and 1%, respectively. The rally in PEPE's value is attributed to substantial acquisitions by whale investors, which have fueled increased demand and bullish momentum for the meme coin.

On March 12, on-chain analyst Lookonchain reported that three whale wallets had acquired a total of 689.79 billion PEPE, valued at $5 million at current market prices. The largest purchase was made by wallet 0x7A7D, which spent 1,413.4 ETH ($2.72 million) for 437.7 billion PEPE. The other two wallets, 0x9212 and 0x7779, purchased 158.58 billion PEPE ($1 million) and 93.51 billion PEPE ($574,000), respectively. The source of these funds remains a topic of speculation, but the acquisitions have sparked renewed interest in the meme coin.

As PEPE's price has risen, so has its daily trading volume, which surged by 18% over the past 24 hours, totaling $1.05 billion at the time of reporting. This simultaneous increase in price and trading volume indicates strong market demand and heightened buying activity, potentially driven by retail investors' fear of missing out (FOMO). This combination suggests bullish momentum in the meme coin's market, signaling further gains if the trend continues.

Additionally, the rising open interest in PEPE's futures market highlights the capital inflow into the asset. As of the latest data, the metric stands at $120 million, marking a 21% increase in the past 24 hours. When an asset's open interest climbs, especially during a price rally, it indicates increased market participation and capital inflow. If macro factors remain favorable and market sentiment stays bullish, there is a strong likelihood of a sustained PEPE rally.

Further confirming the bullish sentiment, PEPE's Elder-Ray Index has returned a positive value for the first time since January 19. This indicator measures the strength of bulls and bears in the market by analyzing the relationship between an asset’s price and a moving average. A positive value indicates that bulls are in control, suggesting upward momentum and potential price gains. If this trend is sustained, it could drive PEPE’s price toward $0.0000083. Conversely, if buying activity weakens, PEPE could break below the support at $0.0000062 and fall to $0.0000048.