Headline: Analyst says PEPE could be the Shiba Inu of this cycle — but warns traders to be cautious
During the 2021–2022 bull cycle, meme coins reshaped crypto markets: Dogecoin’s early surge reportedly climbed roughly 36,000%, and Shiba Inu followed with an eye-popping rally of more than 1,000,000%. That outsized performance has kept traders hunting for the next meme coin that can replicate those gains — and one candidate rising to the top of the conversation is PEPE.
Crypto analyst Rexha took to X (formerly Twitter) to explain why PEPE might play Shiba’s role in the current cycle. Rexha’s thread traces yesterday’s patterns and today’s market movements to argue we’re seeing a repeat of the meme-coin lifecycle.
Key points from Rexha’s take:
- History repeats: After Dogecoin and Shiba’s runs, traders chased cheaper, faster chains in search of the “next big thing.” That migration produced big rallies — and a wave of scams, exemplified by tokens like SAFEMOON on BNB Chain, which later collapsed amid scam allegations.
- Solana’s brief heyday: More recently many traders moved to Solana for low fees and speed. Rexha compares price charts and liquidity patterns, suggesting the Solana meme-trading “trenches” have been drained — projects like PumpFun pulled a lot of liquidity out of the ecosystem.
- Return to quality on Ethereum: As speculative liquidity evaporates on alternate chains, Rexha expects capital and attention to flow back to Ethereum-based meme coins. In that scenario, PEPE is positioned to be this cycle’s “return to quality” leader, potentially running up in a way reminiscent of Shiba Inu’s second major phase.
- A final warning: Rexha cautions that any renewed interest in cross-chain meme plays could lure traders into copycat schemes (what he calls a potential “PumpFun V2”) — a “Final Extraction” where late participants become exit liquidity. His takeaway: PEPE might be the big winner this cycle, but meme coins remain extremely high-risk and traders should exercise vigilance.
Bottom line: The narrative that PEPE could be this cycle’s Shiba Inu is gaining traction among on-chain analysts — but history also shows the meme market cycles through euphoric rallies, speculative detours and painful exits. Traders should treat such calls as hypotheses, not guarantees, and manage risk accordingly.
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