Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT), a meme coin built on the Solana blockchain, experienced a 20% increase in its value when Coinbase announced plans to include the token in its listing roadmap. This move lifted PNUT's market capitalization to $1.34 billion, placing it ahead of popular meme coins like POPCAT and MOG COIN.
Coinbase's decision to list PNUT sparked excitement among traders, elevating the token's price to $1.35, marking a 30% spike within a day. Trading activity surged significantly, with trading volumes reaching $1.5 billion. Additionally, Coinbase plans to list another Solana meme coin, Gigachad (GIGA), although it didn't see the same rally.
PNUT gained fame after a viral social media controversy involving a squirrel mascot, Peanut, captured the attention of the crypto community on Twitter. It previously reached a market cap of $2.4 billion at its peak. The listing of PNUT is part of a broader trend of major exchanges adding meme coins to their offerings.
Despite the success, Binance faced criticism for listing low-market-cap meme coins, with users accusing it of facilitating pump-and-dump schemes. Furthermore, the launchpad Pump.fun came under scrutiny for its live-stream feature misuse, leading to financial scams and UK user restrictions after FCA warnings.
This year, Solana meme coins have grown in popularity, collectively reaching a market cap of $20.5 billion, according to CoinGecko data. PNUT remains one of the most prominent players among Solana meme coins.
