The Pepe Memecoin (PEPE) bucked the trend of Bitcoin (BTC) dominance over the past 24 hours, rising by 31% following a 6.9 trillion ($5.5 million) token burn.

Burning permanently removes tokens from supply and is done by sending them to an address not controlled by anyone.

The popular frog-themed Memecoin is now trading at a two-month high as the burn quells concerns over the team's token holdings. The team now holds 3.79 trillion tokens ($3.72 million), which would have minimal impact if sold on the open market as 24-hour trading volume has surged to $397 million, according to CoinMarketCap.

"A new team of advisors have been brought on to guide Pepe forward," a post on the Pepe X (formerly Twitter) account said. "Uses for the remaining 3.79T tokens attributed to the original team CEX multi-sig wallet for strategic partnerships and marketing opportunities are currently being explored."

The decision to burn tokens came after a handful of rogue Pepe developers executed a series of unexpected transfers out of the project's multisignature wallet, effectively stealing millions of dollars worth of Pepe, as alleged by a team member.

The tokens burned equate to 1.6% of the memecoin's total supply.

The rise in PEPE coincided with bitcoin rallying to a 17-month high of $35,000, fueled by optimism around the potential approval of a spot exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Bitcoin dominance is at its highest point since April 2021, with the original cryptocurrency outpacing the majority of altcoins aside from pepe.


All writers’ opinions are their own and do not constitute financial advice in any way whatsoever. Nothing published by CoinDesk constitutes an investment recommendation, nor should any data or Content published by CoinDesk be relied upon for any investment activities. CoinDesk strongly recommends that you perform your own independent research and/or speak with a qualified investment professional before making any financial decisions.

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