BlackRock-labeled wallet nets $2.4M from PEPE BlackRock-labeled wallet nets $2.4M from PEPE
A wallet labeled BlackRock withdrew 1.27 trillion in PEPE tokens worth $1.98 million from Binance to four addresses on May 18.
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Updated: May. 18, 2023 at 5:49 pm UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Crypto Twitter is abuzz with news that one of the whales holding Pepe (PEPE) memecoin might be the investment giant BlackRock Fund.
The speculation started when a wallet labeled BlackRock withdrew 1.27 trillion in PEPE tokens worth $1.98 million from Binance to four addresses on May 18, according to Lookonchain.
The four addresses used the same Binance deposit address named blackrock3.eth. The on-chain sleuth suggested that the addresses were likely created by the investment firm and the world’s biggest asset manager, BlackRock.
Lookonchain further noted that the BlackRock Fund bought 1 trillion units of PEPE for $244 on April 21 and sold all the tokens for $2.63 million on May 5 — making a profit of $2.39 million from the trade.
CryptoSlate could not confirm if the wallet belonged to the investment firm.
BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world, with around $10 trillion in assets under management as of January 2022.
The firm already had some exposure to crypto through its investment in FTX which resulted in a $24 million loss. Last year, the company partnered with Coinbase to offer institutional trading and custody services.
However, many are skeptical that the wallet belongs to the Blackrock investment firm. While several crypto entrepreneurs have shown interest in memecoins, a community member pointed out that the idea of the world’s largest assets manager trading these tokens seems far-fetched, especially after it lost millions on seemingly more solid investments.
Meanwhile, the skepticism has not dulled the optimism surrounding PEPE. The memecoin saw its value surge massively between late April and early May — its market cap peaked at over $1 billion.
In the last 24 hours, its value increased 7.6% to $0.0000016 as of press time, according to CryptoSlate’s data.
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Oluwapelumi Adejumo
Oluwapelumi values Bitcoin's potential. He imparts insights on a range of topics like DeFi, hacks, mining and culture, underlining transformative power.
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BlackRock
BlackRock, synonymous with global asset management, is an American multinational investment management corporation based in New York City.
Coinbase
Coinbase is a digital currency exchange and wallet service that allows individuals to buy, sell, and store digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.
FTX
FTX is a defunct cryptocurrency exchange, currently in bankruptcy proceedings, that was founded by Sam Bankman-Fried and Zixiao “Gary” Wang in May 2019.
