Pudgy Penguins has proven how serious it is by bringing Web2 normies into crypto with a massive airdrop and generous PENGU allocations which had everyone scrambling to check their Phantom.
TL;DR
- Pudgy Penguins launches token with huge airdrop
- U.K. FCA warns people about Retardio
- Meme Bank Platform aims to bring utility to meme coins
- Fartcoin continues its astronomical run
- Drake’s X account gets hacked
Intro
Pudgy Penguins has proven how serious it is by bringing Web2 normies into crypto with a massive airdrop and generous PENGU allocations which had everyone scrambling to check their Phantom and exchange wallets to see if they qualified. Be careful of phishing—the official claim link is here: https://claim.pudgypenguins.com.
Keep an eye out this week for my interview with Pudgy Penguins head honcho Luca Netz, where he expands on his plans for the sea birds. Luca is regarded as a Web3 visionary who has been playing 4D chess with it since he acquired the Penguins IP in 2022.
The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is on a rampage going after crypto projects and platforms, but its efforts appear to be backfiring as it only sends the degens into max buy mode.
7-Day Meme Coin Market Snapshot
The overall meme coin market cap dipped from about $124 billion to just over $112 billion as a surging Bitcoin claims back dominance. While writing this, it has dropped to $106 billion due to the usual Fed FOMC interest-rate jitters.
The top meme coins have continued to decline over the last seven days.
Source: CoinMarketCap
Bitcoin has been on an absolute tear over the last week with ATH after ATH, topping $108K as MicroStrategy acquires another $1.5 billion BTC.
Boomers used to talk about the greatest wealth transfer, and now the degens have invented a new term, “the greatest memetic wealth transfer.”
Crypto majors Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP are up, but Solana is still lagging and ended red over the last seven days. The $PENGU airdrop has been a timely shot in the arm this week though.
Source: CoinMarketCap
Meme Coin Market vs Other Crypto Sectors
DeFiLlama's Narrative Tracker showed that memes have underperformed but still did better than Solana.
The 30-day trajectory shows a healthy recovery for meme coins, but they’re only up about 15%.
Source: DeFiLlama
Top 20 Meme Coin Leaderboard
AI Agents and meme coins are still running wild. VIRTUAL has reached a market cap of over $3 billion—an absolute masterclass on product and tokenomics (*kicks himself for fading this gem a month ago*).
Source: CMC Meme Coins Page
Meme Coin Charts: 7-Day Insights
FARTCOIN has flipped GOAT and hits a billion dollars as the culture wars continue. Are you sh***ing me?
Biggest Gainers (Last 7 Days):
- SPX6900 (SPX): +27.57%
- Goatseus Maximus (GOAT): +23.27%
- Gigachad (GIGA): +16.47%
- Notcoin (NOT): +2.90%
- Turbo (TURBO): +1.10%
Biggest Losers (Last 7 Days):
- BabyDogeCoin (BabyDoge): -25.95%
- Mog Coin (MOG): -20.64%
- Neiro (NEIRO): -9.73%
- Popcat (POPCAT): -9.34%
- Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT): -6.11%
Meme Coins by Chain
Solana Memes
- FARTCOIN rises 138% as they continue tokenizing farts with the help of bots.
- Ai16Z continues showing strength, rising by 51% as the team collaborates with Stanford University’s Future of Digital Currency Initiative.
Ethereum Memes
- SPX6900 is up 27.57% while they continue their mission to flip the stock market. Somewhere in the Supercycle, Murad approves.
- TURBO rises as they plan their transformation.
Tron Memes
- Sugar Boy spikes 65% on their adventure to fly to the sun.
- The first AI Agent launches on Tron.
Most Tron meme coins have low market caps compared to tokens on chains like Ethereum and Solana, so they are extremely risky until proven otherwise.
SUI Memes
Sui meme coins are on fire!
- AXOL (AXOL) soars by 130% with their New User Deposit Event.
Base
- Based Pepe (PEPE) rises 50% and becomes the fourth-largest meme coin on Base.
- Akuma Inu (AKUMA) surges by 40% and returns to the top 10 memes on Base.
- Mister Miggles (MIGGLES) is up 20% as they receive licenses from America’s No. 1 crypto exchange.
Bitcoin Runes
- Good luck with hacking the Bitcoin network.
- Murad is bullish on Bitcoin meme coins (Runes).
Meme Coin News
Pudgy Penguins Launch PENGU
Pudgy Penguins has launched its PENGU token on the Solana blockchain, with unclaimed tokens to be burned after 88 days.
The token, already listed on top-tier crypto exchanges, saw a 50% price drop after launch. With a supply of 88.8 billion, Pudgy Penguins aims to go multichain, targeting Ethereum and Abstract next.
Big launches never seem to escape controversy, as reports of damaged Pudgy Toys and stolen QR codes have soured the flagship Web3 project.
U.K. FCA Issues Warning
The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a public warning against RETARDIO, a Solana-based meme coin, on Dec. 16, stating that the project may be offering or promoting financial services without proper authorization.
The notice warns investors that engaging with RETARDIO disqualifies them from protections like the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, meaning investors are unlikely to recover funds if the project collapses.
Despite the FCA’s warning, Retardio surged by 16% in value, reaching a $111 million market cap, though it previously peaked near $240 million. The community responded to the notice with humor, sharing memes and jokes across social media.
Somewhere, Elon Musk approves.
Drake’s X Account Hacked
They’ve done it again. On Dec. 15, Canadian rapper Drake's X account was hacked to promote Anita, a scam meme coin falsely linked to his upcoming Anita Max Wynn tour and betting platform Stake.
The scam quickly gained traction due to Drake's massive following of 39 million, driving Anita to $4.9 million in trading volume within hours, with over 7,000 buy orders. Crypto analysts, including ZachXBT, soon exposed Anita as a scam.
Meme Bank Platform
Vlad Gorbunov, founder of the Choise.ai ecosystem, wants meme coins to evolve beyond just hype-driven assets to incorporate utility-driven features with practical tools like token burns, staking rewards, and real-world applications.
Meme Bank will enable payments via Visa/Mastercard bank cards with custom designs, bridging the gap between meme coins and everyday financial services.
Source: MB
What Can You Do Next?
- Keep an eye on the Pudgy Penguin ecosystem. Pengu may just be the beginning.
- Meme coins show signs of slowing growth. Make sure to have a diversified portfolio.
- Be careful of scams promoted online by influencers and celebrities.
- Remember that meme coins often decline faster when the larger market retraces.
- Consider reinvesting some profits into safer crypto tokens or stables.
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