The crypto realm has recently seen a huge spike in the meme coin $Pnut’s value which has exceeded the $120M in market capitalization. As per the on-chain analytics firm Lookonchain, the meteoric rise of $Pnut has occurred after the viral story of a squirrel called “Pnut.” The analytics provider provided the details of $Pnut’s substantial rise in a series of X posts.
$Pnut’s Market Capitalization Reaches $120M Backed by a Viral Squirrel’s Story
Lookonchain mentioned that, with its market cap reaching $120M, $Pnut has provided huge gains to many traders. The story responsible for this remarkable surge started back in the year 2017. At that time, Mark Longo rescued the squirrel that got an injury due to a car accident. After that, he named it Pnut along with sharing the story thereof. Additionally, Longo kept on sharing the recovery journey of the squirrel on social media.
Within a short time, Pnut gained enormous attention because of its playful personality as well as endearing looks. It became an adored online icon. Nonetheless, the tragedy took place on the 30th of October. At this time, the New York-based Department of Environmental Conservation obtained complaints concerning the “unlawfully possessed” animal. While responding to this, the DEC came forward and confiscated Pnut. Subsequently, they euthanized the animal while testing for rabies, igniting a viral outcry across social media. This drew the attention of prominent figures and common masses who considered Pnut’s death to be an unjust loss.
Famous Congressman Condemns the DEC’s Action of Euthanizing the Squirrel ‘Pnut’
This controversy rapidly entered the crypto sector with the release of the meme token $Pnut. However, this is not the 1st instance where the public sentiment emerging from an eminent animal incident has paved the way for the launch of a meme coin. This is analogous to a meme coin $Harambe’s launch. It was developed following a gorilla’s death. Harambe’s death raised the meme token’s market capitalization to a staggering $80M.
The interest in the story of Pnut was elevated further when Nick Langworthy, a popular Congressman, condemned the DEC’s actions. This led to an additional spike in the growth of $Pnut. As a result of this, several top players such as crypto whales turned toward $Pnut. One of these whales invested up to $1.56M.