Imagine a world where meme coins, once considered ‘speculative assets,’ are now making serious waves in the crypto market. Their market cap is soaring above $54 billion, marking a nearly 20% surge in just a day. This isn’t just a blip on the radar – seven meme coins have muscled their way into the top 100 cryptos by market cap.
So, what’s fueling this meme coin mania?
The answer lies in a ‘speculative buying frenzy’ that’s sweeping across the Asia trading session. The report suggests that retail FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is the driving force behind this rally, signaling a major shift in market dynamics.
QCP Capital analysts have also noticed a spike in leveraged buying activity, indicating a ‘robust’ momentum that might only pause if Bitcoin breaks its all-time high in dollar terms. The report states, ‘Altcoins, especially meme coins, are rallying hard as retail FOMO really kicks in now. Leveraged buyers will likely not relent until we break all-time highs, which could be any time now.’
Major meme coins like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, PEPE, and BONK are riding this wave, registering massive gains of 27%, 57%, 46%, and 68% respectively over the last 24 hours. This underscores the growing investor interest in meme coins and the broader trend of retail investment driving the crypto market.
Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have even cemented their spots within the top 15 global crypto market cap rankings, demonstrating the significant traction meme coins have gained among investors.
This surge in meme coins is part of a larger trend of increased retail participation in the cryptocurrency market. Analysts from JPMorgan have echoed QCP Capital’s observations, highlighting the crucial role retail traders played in the cryptocurrency market rally throughout February.
Under the guidance of Managing Director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, a study by JPMorgan’s research group emphasized the significant role of ‘small-scale investors,’ or ‘mom-and-pop’ traders, in driving prominent cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin to a two-year high last month.
The researchers noted, ‘We find that the retail impulse into crypto rebounded in February, thus likely responsible for this month’s strong crypto market rally.’
Meanwhile, Bitcoin has been reaching new heights over the past 24 hours, trading above $66,000, marking a nearly 30% increase over the past week. This upward trajectory is also evident in Bitcoin’s market cap, which currently exceeds a staggering $1.2 trillion.
