Pepe Drops 4.25% Amid Whale Accumulation, Bitcoin Resistance

Pepe's latest price was $0.00001217, down 4.248% in the last 24 hours. This significant move aligns with a surge in large transaction volumes, indicating growing interest from whales and institutional players. Notably, transactions in the $100k–$1M range jumped 147.25%, while $1M–$10M and $10k–$100k transactions surged by 100% and 91.72%, respectively. These increases suggest a quiet yet intentional capital shift, which could be laying the groundwork for the next rally phase. This aggressive accumulation behavior is often seen in early rally phases and marks a potentially bullish signal.

While whale activity and price movements stirred the market, social dominance has only shown a modest rise, climbing to 0.82% from previous lows near 0.6%. This increase is relatively subdued compared to euphoric spikes seen in previous uptrends, suggesting that retail traders are still on the sidelines, watching how whales maneuver. The market appears to be in a transitional phase—where smart money acts early while broader sentiment remains cautious.

PEPE’s Network Value to Transactions (NVT) ratio has risen, which may raise concerns. The indicator reflects that the token’s valuation is starting to outpace its on-chain transaction volume. Such an imbalance often signals overheating or waning network utility relative to market cap. While it doesn’t confirm a reversal, the elevated ratio highlights the need for caution among traders. Moreover, it suggests that unless activity picks up, sustaining higher levels may prove difficult.

Liquidation data showed intense long pressure building near a certain level, while shorts clustered above another level. These zones mark critical battlegrounds between bulls and bears. High leverage positions, particularly 25x and 50x, are densely packed across these levels, increasing the probability of sharp moves. Therefore, any breakout or breakdown from the current zone could trigger cascading liquidations. Traders should watch closely as market makers exploit these concentrations to induce volatility.

Despite the recent dip, PEPE still maintained its structure above the mid-Bollinger band. The price faced rejection near a resistance level and has since pulled back. However, the MACD was approaching a neutral crossover zone, hinting that bearish momentum could slow. The broader uptrend that started in early April will remain intact unless key support fails. Therefore, the recent correction may serve as a healthy consolidation phase rather than a full reversal. Momentum traders may look for strength above a certain level to re-enter bullish positions.

The recent whale accumulation, rising high-value transactions, and mild uptick in social interest suggest growing confidence in PEPE’s outlook. However, caution is warranted as the NVT ratio and liquidation heatmap signal possible volatility. Therefore, PEPE may be entering an accumulation phase, but a breakout depends on whether price gains attract stronger network activity and broader sentiment.

It was a sea of red in the crypto market on Saturday as Bitcoin and most digital tokens retreated. Popular tokens like Pepe plunged by double digits. The main reason why altcoins like Pepe prices have crashed is that Bitcoin has found substantial resistance at a certain level. After rising to that level, the coin has remained in a tight range as its volume has slumped. Altcoins often move in the same direction as Bitcoin. Most of them rally when the Bitcoin price is pointing upwards, and fall when it is either dropping or stalling.

However, there are signs that the ongoing Bitcoin price consolidation is calm before the storm, before it bounces back soon. First, the chart shows that volume of Bitcoin has continued moving downwards. In theory, this is usually a bearish sign. However, in practice, Bitcoin tends to rebound when the volume in the spot and futures market is falling. Second, this chart shows that Bitcoin has formed two unique bullish chart patterns that will push it higher in the coming weeks. It has formed a bullish pennant pattern that is shown in black in the chart. A bullish pennant has a flagpole-like pattern and a symmetrical triangle. In most cases, it normally breaks out when the two lines of the triangle are nearing their confluence level. Bitcoin has also slowly formed a cup-and-handle pattern whose upper side is at a certain level. This cup has a depth of about 32%, meaning that the coin will eventually surge to over $140,000. The caveat of all this is that the C&H pattern takes a long time to form and complete.

Altcoins like Pepe also crashed because of profit-taking. That’s because most of these coins were up sharply from their April lows. Pepe Coin was up by over 189% in the same period. It is common for cryptocurrencies and other assets to pull back after going through a strong rally, especially in a short period of time. This explains why many of these tokens dropped despite no negative headline about them.