Pepe price was up more than 35% on the day as the cryptocurrency market witnessed a pumping start to 2026.
There were also huge gains for Bonk, Floki and SPX6900, highlighting renewed memecoin vigour.
Speculative enthusiasm is also driving price movements for top coins, Bitcoin and Ethereum.
As of writing, Pepe ranked as the best performing memecoin among the top 100 by market cap.
The frog-themed token had recorded an impressive 35% gain in the past 24 hours, trading to intraday highs of $0.000005667.
Notably, Pepe’s price rally has been accompanied by a dramatic increase in trading activity.
Per CoinMarketCap, the Ethereum-based memecoin boasted a 24-hour volume of over $1.4 billion, the metric up a staggering 650% in the past 24 hours.
As bulls ride the uptick, short liquidations have amplified upward pressure. CoinGlass data shows over $10 million in liquidations for the token.
More than $9.1 million of this is in bearish positions.
Pepe price chart by TradingView
Why is Pepe’s price soaring?
Optimism around Pepe comes amid a bold prediction from James Wynn, a prominent trader on the Hyperliquid platform.
Wynn has forecast that the memecoin’s market capitalisation could reach an astonishing $69 billion by the end of 2026.
“Back on Day 1 of $PEPE when it was at $600k market cap, I called it to go to multiple billions. Ultimate conviction and belief – and it paid off massively,” he posted on X.
“Now, I’m calling $PEPE to go from $1.7bn to $69bn+ in 2026.”
It’s a bold take that suggests a potential 40-fold increase from its current level of around $1.7 billion.
As he notes, Pepe has the potential to mirror or even surpass what Shiba Inu did in the previous cycle.
The Pepe market cap has soared to above $2.3 billion hours after Wynn’s prediction.
If realised, this could mean the token’s price catapults past the all-time high of $0.00002825 reached in December 2024.
Wynn says a combination of technical, sentimental, and overall bullish catalysts positions Pepe well ahead of a fresh memecoin resurgence.
He noted:
“If this bull market is not over, which I do not think it is, there is a high likelihood in my mind we see $PEPE at the forefront of memes leading the way as money flows into T1 memes, and proper fundamental altcoins. All social metrics (crucial factor for meme coins) MASSIVELY favor Pepe, including exchanges using it as a branding in their posts to increase engagement and get more sign ups.”
In his view, if Shiba Inu can spike to $41 billion, PEPE has the potential to go higher.
Top memecoin Dogecoin soared to $88 billion when its price went parabolic, and Pepe could easily do $69 billion.
Bonk, Floki, and SPX6900 among top memecoin gainers
While Pepe dominates headlines, other established memecoins have also contributed to the sector’s strong opening to 2026.
Floki (FLOKI), bolstered by ongoing ecosystem developments, has seen a 19% increase in the past day.
Like Pepe, this comes alongside elevated trading volumes.
Another top gainer is Bonk (BONK), the Solana-based community token.
Renewed interest has BONK trading 15% up in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, SPX6900 (SPX), known for its satirical take on financial markets, has surged 16%.
Pudgy Penguins, Shiba Inu and Dogecoin are also boasting double-digit gains as the memecoin category as a whole witnesses a vibrant start to the year.
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