Pepe coin’s $6b wipeout: will the meme coin recover or fall further?
Pepe, the third-largest meme coin in crypto, wavered over the last two weeks as its recent downtrend lost momentum.
Pepe (PEPE) has held at the key support level of $0.000010, down 65% from its December high.
The decline has erased nearly $6 billion from its market capitalization, which has fallen from $10 billion to $4.1 billion. This mirrors the broader meme coin maket, as most tokens have crashed over the past two months.
Pepe’s sell-off coincided with a sharp decline in futures open interest, signaling reduced investor demand. Open interest has dropped from over $556 million in January to $258 million today. This metric tracks all unfilled call and put option orders in the futures market, offering insight into market sentiment.
On the positive side, many Pepe holders appear to be holding their positions. Data from CoinCarp shows that the number of Pepe holders has climbed to 404,100, up from 384,000 in the past month.
Pepe price technicals are sending mixed signals
The daily chart shows that Pepe’s price has retreated from $0.00002828 in December to $0.000010. Recently, it formed a death cross pattern as the 50-day and 200-day Weighted Moving Averages crossed, a historically bearish signal in technical analysis.
The ongoing consolidation suggests that Pepe may be forming a bearish flag pattern, characterized by a sharp drop followed by a period of sideways movement. This pattern often signals further downside.
Adding to the bearish outlook, Pepe has fallen below the 61.8% Fibonacci Retracement level at $0.000011, indicating that bears remain in control. These technical patterns suggest a potential decline toward $0.0000058, the lowest swing level recorded in August last year.
However, there is also a case for a bullish reversal. Pepe has formed a falling wedge pattern, with its trendlines converging, often a precursor to a breakout. If this scenario plays out, Pepe could rebound toward $0.000025, a 150% gain from its current level.
