PENGUIN memecoin surges 564% following White House social media post

Source: CryptoNewsNet Original Title: PENGUIN memecoin surges 564% following White House social media post Original Link: The Nietzschean Penguin (PENGUIN) token, a memecoin launched on the Solana layer-1 blockchain network, surged by about 564% following a social media post from the United States White House.

On Friday, the White House published a social media post on X showing the US President and a penguin holding hands and walking through the snow, which went viral.

PENGUIN traded at a market capitalization of about $387,000 before the post and recorded $244 million in trading volume in the 24 hours after the post, according to SolanaFloor.

The token’s market capitalization is about $136 million at the time of this writing, and it is trading at about $0.13, data from DEXScreener shows.

“The early success of PENGUIN is proof that onchain trading was never dead, just a sleeping giant waiting for the right moment,” said the co-founder of a memecoin launchpad platform where PENGUIN launched.

The surge of the PENGUIN token came amid a broad downturn in the memecoin market, which was one of the best-performing crypto sectors in 2024, but crashed after several high-profile celebrity tokens declined by 80% or more from their peak prices.

Memecoins show signs of life in 2026 after a disappointing year

11.6 million crypto tokens failed in 2025, largely driven by the flood of memecoins launched on various launchpad platforms.

The total market capitalization of memecoins briefly surged by 23% in January 2026, rising from about $38 billion in December 2025 to over $47 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.

The brief surge in memecoins was accompanied by a spike in social media mentions of memecoins, according to crypto market analysis company Santiment.

“Memecoins typically lead when risk appetite returns. The rebound in the Fear and Greed Index from extreme fear toward neutral reinforces this shift,” said the chief investment officer at a trading firm.

However, the memecoin market fell back down to about $39 billion in total market capitalization at the time of publication, as crypto markets continue to move sideways, oscillating between temporary short-term rallies and pullbacks.