Viral squirrel ‘Peanut’ triggers Solana memecoin frenzy

Memecoins, riding the sudden rise in popularity of “Peanut the Squirrel,” has hit the Solana decentralized finance (DeFi) markets, with some tokens even reaching a market capitalization above $120 million.  

Mark Longo, the owner of Peanut’s social media account with over 600,000, wrote that on Oct. 30, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation confiscated and euthanized the popular squirrel and a raccoon named “Fred.” This follows complaints of alleged unsafe housing for Peanut. Longo wrote on Instagram: 

“Well internet, you WON. You took one of the most amazing animals away from me because of your selfishness. To the group of people who called DEC, there’s a special place in hell for you.”

Longo said he first rescued the squirrel about seven years ago after seeing Peanut’s mother get hit by a car. Because of an injury, Longo deemed that Peanut couldn’t survive in the wild. Because of this, Peanut nursed him back to health and became his caretaker. 

The event triggered outrage, with personalities like billionaire Elon Musk criticizing the government and calling it “mindless” and “heartless.” 

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Peanut-themed memecoins hit the markets

Peanut’s sudden popularity spurred memecoin creators to launch meme-based tokens based on the popular squirrel. 

DeFi data tracker Dexscreener shows that several memecoins based on Peanut have been launched on the Solana network. In addition, two Peanut-themed memecoins have made it to the top 10 tokens in Dexscreener’s 24-hour charts. 

A token called Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT) made two days ago had a volume of almost $300 million and recorded over 200,000 transactions. The token currently has a market capitalization of $100 million, peaking at $120 million before experiencing a correction. 

A similar memecoin also hit the BNB Smart Chain and hit a market cap of $80 million while recording a volume above $110 million. 

Meanwhile, a Fred-themed memecoin, based on the raccoon euthanized with Peanut, also hit the Solana memecoin markets. A token called First Convicted Raccoon (FRED) recorded almost 150,000 transactions and a trading volume of $83 million. Despite this, the project only has a market capitalization of $8.2 million. 

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