PEPE Coin Explodes 26% Today: What’s Fueling This Meme Coin Frenzy?

Another day, another meme coin making headlines—this time it's the frog-themed PEPE token leaping ahead of the pack.

The Sudden Surge

No major protocol upgrade, no groundbreaking partnership announcement. Yet, PEPE's price chart just printed a 26% green candle that caught everyone's attention. It's the kind of move that has traders scrambling and skeptics rolling their eyes—another classic crypto spectacle where sentiment and speculation briefly override fundamentals.

Following the Meme Momentum

The jump appears less about PEPE's own roadmap and more about the broader, often irrational, wave lifting all meme boats. When the market gets a taste for risk, capital floods into these high-volatility assets first. It's a pattern as old as Dogecoin: social media buzz builds, FOMO kicks in, and price follows—at least temporarily.

The Trader's Dilemma

Chasing a 26% pump is a dangerous game, the financial equivalent of timing a fireworks display. The real question isn't why it went up today, but where it goes tomorrow after the excitement fades. For every trader who catches the wave, another gets caught holding the bag when the music stops—a timeless dance in the casino-like corners of crypto.

So, is this the start of a new leg up or just another dead-cat bounce in a frog costume? In the meme coin arena, it's often hard to tell the difference until your portfolio's already taken the leap.

As the new year began, PEPE, the popular meme coin inspired by Pepe the Frog, surprised the market with a sharp rally. On January 2, 2026, PEPE coin price jumped around 26%, trading near $0.000005106, while its 24-hour trading volume surged past $800 million. 

This sudden MOVE caught many traders off guard, raising questions about what sparked the rally.

Why is PEPE Coin Going Up?

Strong Retail Buying Momentum

One key reason behind PEPE’s rise is strong buying from small investors. Data shows that Robinhood users now hold around 8.3% of PEPE’s total supply. This means many retail traders are still buying and holding the token instead of selling during short-term price moves.

Additionally, social media hype played a big role. The official PEPE account posted the message “We ride at dawn,” which quickly spread across crypto Twitter and helped boost market confidence.

We ride at dawn $PEPE pic.twitter.com/3KJGUiX9pt

PEPE Trading Volume Explodes by 370% 

In the past 24hours, PEPE’s trading volume jumped more than 370% in 24 hours, crossing $805 million. This kind of volume spike usually points to new buyers entering the market, not just slow price movement caused by low liquidity.

Short Liquidations Add Extra Fuel

Another factor pushing PEPE higher is short liquidations. After weeks of sideways price action, many traders were betting on a drop. When PEPE suddenly moved up, these short positions were forced to close, creating extra buying pressure. Nearly $2.65 million worth of short positions were liquidated in the last 24 hours.

Overall, PEPE saw total liquidations of about $3.13 million, with around 83% coming from short traders. This wave of forced buying helped fuel the sharp price jump.

PEPE Price Prediction 

Recently, James Wynn, a well-known trader on Hyperliquid, made a bold prediction about PEPE’s future. He believes the meme coin’s market cap could climb to $69 billion by the end of 2026, a nearly 32x jump from its current level of around $2.14 billion.

According to Wynn, PEPE’s social metrics are significantly stronger, suggesting it could achieve a similar performance.

“Now, I’m calling PEPE to go from $1.7 billion to $69 billion in 2026, or I delete my account.” 

If Wynn’s forecast plays out, PEPE’s price could rally toward $0.000163 by the end of the year.