Business Markets News Report
August 28, 2023

Inside PEPE Coin’s Drama: What’s Leading To The Token’s Decline?

In Brief

Crypto influencer Pauly shared that Zachary Testa is the founder of the meme coin PEPE. 

PEPE’s team address transferred 16 trillion PEPE tokens across four distinct cryptocurrency exchanges, leading to PEPE coin’s price drop by 15% on August 25.

 The protective structure of the wallet shifted to a relatively vulnerable 2/8 multi-signature setup, causing suspicion among the community.

On August 26, PEPE coin’s official X profile announced that three members of the team suddenly withdrew funds from the multi-signature wallet and left the project. Around 16 million PEPE tokens were transferred to various crypto exchanges.

Pauly, a former promoter of PEPE coin, disclosed that the team possesses $16–17 million in PEPE across a minimum of nine distinct insider wallets.

Inside PEPE Coin's Drama: What’s Leading To The Token’s Decline?

Over the past weekend, developments in the PEPE coin community have revealed a sequence of crucial incidents, igniting discussions and instigating concerns. The coin faces hardship as dwindling faith in the project and its departed founders pervades the community.

Subsequently, these events led to a substantial depreciation in PEPE’s value.


On August 25, crypto influencer Pauly shared that Zachary Testa, also known as @degenharambe on X (former Twitter) and @LordKekLol on TG, is the founder of the meme coin PEPE. 

In a thread, the influencer shared contentious content on Twitter, revealing Testa’s personal details, his wallet addresses, and insider distribution wallets associated with Pepe.

He stated that the PEPE founder is also a landscape photographer who has a documented history of violating laws in multiple wilderness areas, on sacred indigenous land, and other areas with drone bans.

The online community response was divided, with some supporting Pauly and others condemning doxxing as a privacy breach.

On the same day, PEPE’s team address transferred 16 trillion PEPE tokens across four distinct cryptocurrency exchanges, leading to PEPE coin’s price drop by 15%. Moreover, the amount of transferred funds were reported to be approximately $15.08 million (at the time of writing). 

There has also been a shift in the security environment of the PEPE coin multi-signature wallet. The protective structure of the wallet, previously safeguarded by a 5/8 multi-signature system, has undergone a significant reduction. It shifted to a relatively vulnerable 2/8 multi-signature setup, causing suspicion among the community.

Following this, a substantial holder of PEPE coin purchased 640 billion Pepecoin tokens with 320 ETH, which were valued at approximately $529,000 at the moment of the event. The same address has previously acquired significant amounts of PEPE in May and June of this year, according to Lookonchain

All of these events led to the community becoming more worried and suspicious, as it started expecting a “rug pull.”

On August 26, PEPE coin’s official X profile announced that three members of the team suddenly withdrew funds from the multi-signature wallet and left the project, leaving control entirely to its remaining team members.

Around 16 million PEPE tokens were transferred to various crypto exchanges. 


In a post, the other co-founder claimed that the remaining ten trillion PEPE in the multi-signature wallet is safe. 

“They then removed themselves from the multisig in an attempt to absolve any association to $PEPE, deleting all of their social accounts and leaving me behind with nothing but a message stating “the multisig has been updated, you are now in full control”,” he stated, in an announcement

Pauly, a former promoter of PEPE coin, disclosed that the team possesses $16–17 million in PEPE across a minimum of nine distinct insider wallets. The influencer further asserted the falseness of the PEPE coin team’s assurances regarding the complete safety of their holdings.

Following this sequence of events, the value of PEPE coin registered a substantial decline. As of the present moment, its price stands at $0.0000000002185.

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Disclaimer

In line with the Trust Project guidelines, please note that the information provided on this page is not intended to be and should not be interpreted as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other form of advice. It is important to only invest what you can afford to lose and to seek independent financial advice if you have any doubts. For further information, we suggest referring to the terms and conditions as well as the help and support pages provided by the issuer or advertiser. MetaversePost is committed to accurate, unbiased reporting, but market conditions are subject to change without notice.

About The Author

Valeria is a reporter for Metaverse Post. She focuses on fundraises, AI, metaverse, digital fashion, NFTs, and everything web3-related. Valeria has a Master’s degree in Public Communications and is getting her second Major in International Business Management. She dedicates her free time to photography and fashion styling. At the age of 13, Valeria created her first fashion-focused blog, which developed her passion for journalism and style. She is based in northern Italy and often works remotely from different European cities. You can contact her at [email protected]

More articles
Valeria Goncharenko
Valeria Goncharenko

Valeria is a reporter for Metaverse Post. She focuses on fundraises, AI, metaverse, digital fashion, NFTs, and everything web3-related. Valeria has a Master’s degree in Public Communications and is getting her second Major in International Business Management. She dedicates her free time to photography and fashion styling. At the age of 13, Valeria created her first fashion-focused blog, which developed her passion for journalism and style. She is based in northern Italy and often works remotely from different European cities. You can contact her at [email protected]

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