Roaring Kitty Ignites MemeCoin Rally; Apes on the Move Again?

Top meme coins surged on Tuesday following a viral post by retail trader Keith Gill, known for his role in the GameStop short squeeze of 2021. Gill, also known by his online persona “Roaring Kitty,” posted from his @TheRoaringKitty account for the first time in three years, triggering significant market activity in both stocks and tokens.

Gill, who famously turned $58,000 into an estimated $50 million by trading GameStop (GME) options between 2019 and 2021, posted a simple picture that sent GameStop’s stock soaring. Despite multiple trading halts and no direct mention of GameStop in his post, the stock nearly doubled in value on Monday.

The excitement surrounding GameStop quickly spilled over into the cryptocurrency market. Several meme coins and joke tokens referencing GameStop, Gill, and his online persona appeared on the Solana and Ethereum blockchains, with one GME-themed token skyrocketing by as much as 500%.

Gill later posted a video featuring the X-Men character Wolverine, which led to the creation of dozens of WOLVERINE tokens by opportunistic developers. However, most of these tokens plummeted by over 90% within hours.

The meme coin rally wasn’t limited to smaller tokens. Larger tokens such as Pepe (PEPE), Floki (FLOKI), and cat-themed tokens like Popcat (POPCAT) and Mog (MOG) saw gains of up to 30% in the past 24 hours, indicating a renewed appetite for risk in the crypto markets after weeks of relatively stagnant trading.

“Roaring Kitty is living proof that retail can outperform institutions at the highest level,” MOG token developer Shisui said. “His return was seen as bullish for meme coins because the market remembered that much of the GameStop mania of 2021 also boosted $DOGE and other meme coins.”

Shisui added, “While we are far from a true risk-on environment, the price movements following Roaring Kitty’s comeback hint at which assets will outperform when frothy conditions return. The market has shown its hand, and it wants $MOG.”

Gill’s appeal extends beyond his substantial financial gains. His ability to challenge hedge funds from his bedroom using publicly available tools has inspired many developers and traders, contributing to the growing acceptance of meme tokens. This sector is now seen as a strong competitor to DeFi and utility crypto projects.

“The industry is just beginning to embrace memes as fun, relatable, and representative of the average person,” said B, lead developer at Floki. “The vast majority of retail investors are flocking to meme coins and ignoring the tired old ‘utility’ crypto projects.”

B noted that while concerns about the lack of fundamentals surrounding meme coins persist, the strong interest in these tokens was anticipated. He highlighted that Floki has been focusing on utility products to engage its audience, who initially bought the tokens as memes.