Fears of ‘Rug Pull’ Surge as Pepe Coin Price Drops 17% After Suspicious Wallet Adjustments

By 0xGorki 08/25/23 12:20 AM

In a shocking turn of events, the price of the frog-themed memecoin, Pepe (PEPE), has taken a nosedive of 17% following a series of significant developments that have left the cryptocurrency community in turmoil. Concerns have been raised regarding recent changes to a multisig wallet and suspicious token transfers, sparking fears of a potential “rug pull” orchestrated by the coin’s developers.

The turmoil began on August 24, when a staggering $16 million worth of Pepe tokens were sent from the developers’ multisig wallet to various cryptocurrency exchanges. This unprecedented move set off alarm bells within the crypto space, with speculations arising that the developers might be looking to offload their holdings, thus destabilizing the coin’s value and leaving investors at a disadvantage.

One of the key changes that raised eyebrows was the alteration in the multisig wallet’s security protocol. The wallet, which had previously required five out of eight signatures to authorize transactions, was abruptly modified to demand only two out of eight signatures. This significant shift in security measures fueled concerns that the developers might be preparing for an exit strategy, allowing for swift and unilateral transfers without the consent of the majority of signatories.

Details of the token transfers have come to light, revealing that the Pepe developers sent substantial amounts of tokens to several exchanges. Specifically, $8.36 million worth of Pepe was directed to OKX, $6.6 million to Binance, and $438,000 to Bybit. An additional $400,000 was transferred to an unknown exchange or wallet, adding to the perplexity surrounding the situation. It’s worth noting that approximately $10.42 million worth of Pepe tokens still remain within the multisig wallet.

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1 hour ago, the Pepe multisig wallet, changed the amount of signatures required on their multisig from a 5/8 to 2/8. This comes after sending $15.7 million worth of $PEPE to exchanges.

A breakdown of what we know: pic.twitter.com/bxBxp6Nzqz

— ASXN (@asxn_r) August 24, 2023

The situation escalated further when the transaction altering the number of signatures required for a multisig vote was confirmed by five signers. This transaction can be tracked on Etherscan, which documented the addresses of these signers: 0x389388BC68fA1637043F3e5e45291302C99bF32D, 0x5973B9F2A492Bcf127E1Bd3C761BDC47D0062560, 0x569F6330ef3Ee7B4585F5bB84d58358776f4f85B, 0x4c58a88d9FBF9984c8DC8feF25F07e9051E3CF2C, and 0xbec7d80eEcA177E3Dc0B8f70788EFF4DBEb93F50.

The transfer of a staggering 16 trillion Pepe tokens, constituting around 3.8% of the total supply, to exchanges and an unverified wallet address has left the community on edge. Notably, this occurrence marked the first instance of Pepe tokens being moved from the project’s multisig wallet to cryptocurrency exchanges.

As the controversy unfolds, the cryptocurrency community is left grappling with concerns about the intentions of Pepe’s developers and the potential impact on the coin’s value. The abrupt changes to the multisig wallet’s security protocol and the massive token transfers have generated suspicions of a possible “rug pull,” a term used to describe situations where developers exit a project after cashing out their holdings, causing the coin’s value to plummet and investors to suffer losses.

Investors and enthusiasts alike will be closely monitoring the situation as it develops, hoping for clarity and transparency from the Pepe development team. This incident serves as a stark reminder of the risks associated with meme-themed cryptocurrencies and the importance of thorough due diligence before investing in any digital asset.

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