Ethereum-based memecoin Pepe&nbsp;surged 27% to a new all-time high over the past 24 hours, driven by speculation around the potential approval of spot Ether&nbsp;exchange-traded funds (ETF) in the United States.
“PEPE is probably the best memecoin play for the ETH ETF,” crypto trader Matthew Hyland claimed in a May 21 X <a href="https://x.com/MatthewHyland_/status/1792702521615794218" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">post</a>.
Pseudonymous crypto trader “Kaleo” <a href="https://x.com/CryptoKaleo/status/1793049944305086688" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">added</a> it was funny how ETH is moving and PEPE is now one of the most obvious hindsight trades out there.”
Ether (<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/ethereum-price">ETH</a>)&nbsp;is up 23.28% over the past two days to $3,785 amid renewed hope that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is moving to <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/sec-reconsidering-spot-ether-etf-denial-analysts">approve spot Ether ETFs</a> by a May 23 deadline — <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/sec-ethereum-etf-decision-coinbase-crypto-analysts">an unexpected turn of events</a> for analysts and the crypto industry.
Pepe (<a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/pepe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">PEPE</a>)&nbsp;is trading at $0.00001387, up 23.48% over the past 24 hours, <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/pepe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">according</a> to CoinMarketCap data.
<figure data-ct-non-breakable="true">
 <img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-05/e472837d-e45a-49de-8ff2-01dc57620727.png" alt="" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 PEPE is up 22.25% over the past seven days. Source: CoinMarketCap
 </figcaption>
</figure>
Pseudonymous crypto trader “Plazma” thinks PEPE’s upward trend will continue but expects brief volatile periods along the way.
“PEPE price discovery should continue for the next few weeks with some normal breaks for a few days and the usual pullbacks. We will be at 2x-3x in just a few weeks,” they wrote in a May 21 X <a href="https://x.com/Plazma0x/status/1792957628190245266" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">post</a>.
Meanwhile, PEPE’s open interest (OI) — measuring the total value of all outstanding PEPE futures contracts across crypto exchanges — rose 40% to $172.96 million over the past 24 hours, <a href="https://www.coinglass.com/pro/dashboard/bitcoin" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">according</a> to CoinGlass data.
An OI rise usually indicates traders are more confident entering future positions on a cryptocurrency, with the data showing a significant number in long positions.
<figure data-ct-non-breakable="true">
 <img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-05/5104bcc5-66fa-4dbf-98ab-868e2388febb.png" alt="" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 PEPE’s price spike over the past 24 hours saw $6 million in short positions liquidated. Source: CoinGlass
 </figcaption>
</figure>
If PEPE’s price drops 6% it would liquidate $10 million in long positions.
Related:<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-price-soars-on-spot-etf-rumor-how-are-eth-options-markets-positioned"> Ethereum price soars on spot ETF rumor — How are ETH options markets positioned?</a>
PEPE led in price growth among the top 10 memecoins by market capitalization over the past 24 hours, but other top memecoins also saw significant price jumps over the past week.
Bonk (BONK) is up 40.80%, Floki (FLOKI) is up 21.94%, and Book of Memes (BOME) is up 25.04%.
Magazine:<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/bitcoin-stacks-price-predictions-cryptocurrency-daan-crypto-trades-hall-of-flame/"> If Bitcoin doubles, Stacks will 4x in 2025: Daan Crypto Trades, X Hall of Flame</a>
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

PEPE reaches new high amid ETH price jump on renewed ETF approval hopes

Cointelegraph

Other articles published on May 22, 2024

Gold Pepe (GOLDPEPE) Will Surge 11,000% Ahead of KuCoin Listing, While Shiba Inu and Dogecoin Lag

Ethereum NFT Sales Pump 33% After First Ethereum ETF Got Listed On DTCC

Don’t FOMO, the Bitcoin (BTC) Price Consolidation to Continue for Few Weeks

Unravelling the Concept: Understanding Ethereum Address Checksums

Analyst Predicts Bitcoin Price Surge Before Next Consolidation

Is China’s Bitcoin mining ban the worst decision this century?

Join our free newsletter for daily crypto updates!