Two Ethereum ecosystem tokens, PEPE and MOG, soared to new all-time highs on Monday, driven by the recent approval of crucial ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF) filings in the U.S. This development has led traders to consider these meme tokens as speculative bets.
Frog-themed PEPE and cat-themed MOG surged 11% and 45%, respectively, in the past 24 hours, reflecting the growing interest in these tokens as proxy investments for ether. Trading volumes for PEPE across both spot and futures markets reached over $1.8 billion, significantly higher than the usual range of $400 million to $600 million.
These gains came as ether saw a nearly 5% increase over the same period, outpacing major tokens while bitcoin (BTC) fell by 1%.
Futures data indicates a spike in open interest for both PEPE and MOG, suggesting new capital entering the market. PEPE's open interest rose to $720 million from $550 million last week, while MOG's increased to $8.3 million from $5 million. This rise in open interest often signals incoming market volatility.
However, the long-to-short ratio for PEPE stands at 54% in favor of short positions, according to Coinalyze, indicating that traders are betting against further price increases.
The rally in PEPE and MOG began when analysts raised the likelihood of ether ETFs being approved for trading in the U.S. PEPE has since entered the top 20 tokens by market capitalization, surpassing $6 billion and turning early investors' modest investments into millions.
Since 2023, meme tokens—often perceived as lacking intrinsic value but commanding significant followings—have gained prominence as speculative bets on their respective ecosystems. For instance, several Solana-based meme coins surged from December to March as the network's SOL tokens gained traction. Additionally, in December, the Avalanche Foundation announced investments in meme tokens built on its network, acknowledging the cultural and memetic value these tokens bring to investors.