PENGU, the token associated with the Pudgy Penguins NFT brand, has captured the market’s attention in the past week. In 7 days, the token’s price has skyrocketed by 90%, even rising 26% in just the past 24 hours.
This surge is not without reason, as the PENGU token’s price pattern appears very similar to that of the PEPE token. According to on-chain analyst Ali Martinez, if the chart continues to mimic PEPE’s trajectory, a price surge to the $1.20 mark is not impossible. This means a price increase of over 40 times its current price.
But there’s an interesting difference between PENGU and PEPE. While PEPE is purely digital, PENGU has a real foothold. The Pudgy Penguins brand has made over $13 million from toy sales at Walmart, Target, and other major retailers.
Not only are they selling toys, but they also share royalties with NFT owners. Amid the booming gaming trend, Pudgy is also preparing to launch a game called Pudgy Party in August 2025, while also exploring the development of a Layer-2 network to strengthen its ecosystem.
PENGU gains momentum as ETF filing and exchange support align
Meanwhile, PENGU has been gaining traction since US regulators acknowledged Canary Capital’s spot ETF application. This is a rare move for a meme-based token. The ETF provides exposure not only to the PENGU token but also to the Pudgy Penguins NFT collection.
Coincidence or not, shortly afterward, Coinbase and Binance US changed their profile pictures to Pudgy’s avatar. The impact? Transaction volume immediately surged 287% to $2.41 billion.
Furthermore, data from the derivatives market also shows considerable excitement. Open interest currently stands at $430 million. This means many traders are entering with leverage. However, the risks are also clear. A 10% correction could trigger liquidations of over $50 million. Nevertheless, for now, the trend remains upward. And when it comes to momentum, this may just be heating up.