Author: Evan Zakhary, Messari Protocol Analyst; Translated by 0xjs@Golden Finance
On December 17, 2024, the Web 3 giant and popular Ethereum-based NFT collection Pudgy Penguins launched the native token PENGU on Solana. The token was distributed through an airdrop, with the initial centralized exchange listings provided by Binance, OKX, and Bybit. Many OG Ethereum and Solana users showed strong enthusiasm for the PENGU airdrop, which rewarded not only those who had direct interactions with the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem but also long-term supporters within the broader NFT and crypto community. On the day of launch, the token reached a peak market value of $3.5 billion, accumulating $90 million in trading volume within the first hour, thus catalyzing a record single-day trading volume on the Solana network.
Source: Artemis, CoinDesk
Fast forward to December 21, 2024. Has the storyline changed just four days later? Despite initially being popular on the day of release, some negative media reports emerged in the following days:
CoinTelegraph emphasizes that PENGU's market value dropped by 50.00% after launch, and Pudgy Penguins' floor price fell by 55.00% (from 36 ETH to 16 ETH).
CryptoBriefing.com points out that under 'immense selling pressure', PENGU's market value has dropped by 50.00%.
CryptoNews.com mentions that PENGU's market value has decreased by 55.00%, noting that memecoins have dropped 'across the board'.
One unfortunate trader even went viral for turning a $10,000 investment in PENGU into $3.00 just minutes after the token's launch. This user's trade was completed with a market value of $140 trillion, a figure that would make the price of PENGU approximately 7.00 times higher than Bitcoin's current price. Commercially reasonable searches also pointed out that as of December 21, 2024, no listed company's value reached or exceeded $100 trillion. Truly unfortunate.
Negative media coverage has cast a shadow over Pudgy Penguins' community-centered vision, which is a Web3 brand with a good track record in promoting within Web 2.
Although recent negative price movements have dominated discussions, the enduring strength of the Pudgy Penguins' Web 3 community and its ability to connect with a broader audience remains noteworthy. This narrative shift may stem more from short-term fluctuations than from fundamental issues.
I personally believe that the investment theme for Pudgy Penguins remains unchanged.
