"PEPE Surges 6% as Ethereum Gains from Bybit's $1.4B Loss"
1min read PEPE Price Rebounds 6% as Analyst Predicts Ethereum Gains from Bybit Losses
PEPE, a popular meme coin, has seen a significant price rebound, surging by 6% following the market turmoil caused by the $1.4 billion hack on Bybit. This sudden recovery has sparked speculation about a potential major rebound in the crypto market.
The Bybit hack, attributed to the notorious Lazarus Group, resulted in the loss of over 400,000 ETH, worth approximately $1.4 billion at the time of the breach. Given that the stolen funds were in ETH, Ethereum-hosted assets like PEPE bore the brunt of the sell-off. PEPE's price plummeted by 10% on Friday, while rival meme coins such as Dogecoin and Solana's Dogwifhat (WIF) contained their losses below 5% in the immediate hours following the hack.
The broader crypto industry quickly rallied to provide support. Binance transferred over 50,000 ETH to Bybit, helping to stabilize liquidity for traders seeking withdrawals. Additionally, Bybit's CEO reassured users about the safety of their funds. These interventions appear to have averted a systemic market collapse reminiscent of previous exchange mishaps, such as the FTX crash, which saw global crypto market capitalization shrink by nearly 50% within 10 days.
Within 24 hours of the Bybit hack, PEPE price showed early signs of recovery, climbing 6% to reclaim the $0.0000155 level at press time.
At press time, the Bybit exploit remains unresolved, with the stolen funds still sitting in a series of cold wallets identified by Arkham Intelligence. While Bybit's security team collaborates with law enforcement agencies, speculation has emerged over how the exchange might recover the stolen assets. Some market analysts suggest that Bybit may be forced to repurchase the equivalent of the stolen ETH to reimburse customers and balance its books. Prominent analyst Ash Crypto echoed this view while alerting his 1.6 million followers on X (formerly Twitter) about the hack on Friday:
"BYBIT hacker can’t sell $1.45 billion ETH for USDC or USDT because it will get frozen by Circle 
