After its Dec. 17 launch, Pudgy Penguins has climbed into the top 10 meme coins by market capitalization, leaving traders wondering what comes next.
The launch of Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) caused a major stir in the crypto market. The price surged nearly 500% on the first day, only to drop sharply. Will the success continue?
On Dec. 17, during the first hours of trading, PENGU’s price increased from $0.01141 to $0.06845, reaching an all-time high (ATH), according to CoinGecko data. This marked a rise of 499.87%.
The price then declined, falling to $0.031 by Dec. 18 – a 55% decrease from the ATH.
Source: CoinGecko
Price volatility following token listings is common, as some traders seek quick profits, often leading to sharp declines. Tokens with limited liquidity during initial trading are particularly susceptible to such fluctuations.
This raises a key question for traders: should they hold or sell after a token’s listing?
Spot on Chain analyzed the behavior of the top 11 largest holders of PENGU.
As of Dec. 18, approximately 351 million PENGU held by these 11 addresses had been sold. Most of these holders sold some of their tokens, while only three retained their holdings.
The largest PENGU claimant, who obtained 177.3 million tokens via an airdrop, transferred all of them to Binance.
Source: Spot on Chain
Will PENGU Revitalize the NFT Market?
Pudgy Penguins is a well-known NFT brand that previously released another collection, Lil Pudgys, featuring a similar theme. Both collections are issued on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain.
The launch of PENGU has drawn attention to this ecosystem. According to NFTpulse, Pudgy Penguins and Lil Pudgys ranked #1 and #2 among the top NFT collections over the past 7 days, with trading volumes increasing by 120.7% and 151.1%, respectively.
Trading revenue also rose, with Pudgy Penguins up by 237.5% and Lil Pudgys by 205.9% during the same period.
Source: NFTpulse
Despite these gains, the overall NFT market remains under pressure.
A significant portion of NFTs have been described as ‘dead.’ NFTevening reported that 96% of NFT projects failed:
‘2023 saw the highest number of dead NFTs, with nearly one-third of them dying that year.‘
Despite the overall decline in the NFT market in recent years, the Pudgy Penguins collection demonstrated growth in 2023.
According to NFT Price Floor, the collection recorded a total trading volume of 149,661 ETH in 2023, up 244.34% compared to 43,462 ETH in 2022.
The floor price also increased, rising from 5.99 ETH in 2022 to 10.64 ETH in 2023.
Source: NFT Price Floor
Why Did the PENGU Airdrop Cause a Stir Despite the NFT Market’s Decline?
The Pudgy Penguins airdrop has sparked interest in the crypto market for several reasons.
One notable factor is that while the NFT collection is on Ethereum, the PENGU token operates on the Solana (SOL) blockchain. According to Igloo, an active member of the Pudgy Penguins community, this decision was made to attract a broader audience.
