Bitcoin hit its highest peak since April on Wednesday, and memecoins have come along for the ride.
Over the last 24 hours, as Bitcoin hovers near $30,200, Pepe coin is up more than 50%, while Dogecoin and Shiba Inu are up 4.3% and 9.6%, respectively, according to CoinMarketCap. And over the last seven days, those three are up 90%, 8%, and 21%.
Pepe coin, one of the latest additions to the world of memecoins, is centered around a cartoon frog mascot. Because there are so many of these memecoins in circulation and their value is tied primarily to investor sentiment, prices tend to whipsaw.
The jump in memecoin performance over the past week comes despite headwinds that hit the crypto sector after the Securities and Exchange Commission filed lawsuits against Coinbase and Binance earlier this month. The market was also weighed down by the Federal Reserve’s more hawkish tone as it announced a pause in interest rate hikes.
This week, Bitcoin has soared after last week saw the cryptocurrency fall below $25,000, its lowest point since March. The most popular cryptocurrency now makes up more than 50% of the total market.
Buoying the performance of Bitcoin, and contributing to the memecoin rally, was BlackRock’s application for a spot Bitcoin ETF. Two other firms, Invesco and WisdomTree, quickly followed with their own applications.
On Tuesday, a new cryptocurrency exchange, EDX Markets, announced its launch with backing from big players in traditional finance like Citadel Securities, Fidelity, and Charles Schwab. The recent increased interest of traditional finance firms in the sector has some investors claiming that crypto prices are set to rise in the second half of the year.