Headline: Pepe rallies as whales pile in and futures heat up — 200-day EMA next key hurdle Pepe (PEPE) extended its bullish run Friday, adding to a two-day surge that lifted the frog-themed meme coin roughly 22% and pushing its weekly gains to about 25%. Renewed whale interest, shrinking exchange inventories and rising speculative activity have improved PEPE’s short-term outlook and put a clear technical target in focus: the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA) at $0.00000363. Whales return: largest single-day transfers since March On-chain data provider Santiment logged seven PEPE transfers worth more than $1 million each on Thursday — the busiest day for high-value PEPE movement since March 16. Large transfers can signal either accumulation or distribution, but accompanying balance changes point to accumulation. Non-exchange wallets boosted combined holdings to 84.04 trillion PEPE from 80.50 trillion between August 12 and the same recent snapshot, a net inflow of 3.54 trillion tokens among major addresses. At the same time, the supply of PEPE held on exchanges slid from 82.75 trillion on August 12 to 81.30 trillion — a 1.45 trillion-token drop that reduces immediate sell-side liquidity and suggests fewer tokens are available for quick exits. Derivatives activity picks up Speculative interest is rising in the futures market as well. PEPE futures Open Interest climbed to a three-month high of $250 million from $209 million the previous day — a $41 million (≈19.6%) jump, per CoinGlass — indicating traders are opening new positions or increasing exposure. The Open Interest-weighted funding rate sits at a positive 0.0095%, meaning longs are paying shorts and reflecting a bullish tilt. Traders should note, however, that rising OI combined with positive funding can make crowded longs vulnerable to rapid liquidations if price reverses. Technical picture: 200-day EMA is the next big test PEPE’s latest pop pushed it above key short-to-medium term EMAs: the 50-day EMA at $0.00000283 and the 100-day EMA at $0.00000300. The token also cleared its June 15 high of $0.00000314. Those moves improve momentum, but the broader trend is not fully bullish until PEPE decisively breaks and holds above the 200-day EMA around $0.00000363. A confirmed close above that level would strengthen the recovery and open a potential path toward the May 10 high at $0.00000459. Momentum indicators add weight to the bulls: the MACD line has crossed above its signal line and the MACD histogram has moved into positive territory, underscoring strengthening buying momentum. Still, if PEPE fails to clear the 200-day EMA, profit-taking could follow this week’s sharp rally. Initial supports on any pullback are the 100-day EMA ($0.00000300) and the 50-day EMA ($0.00000283); a decisive drop below both would expose the July 8 low at $0.00000255 and weaken the bullish case. Bottom line On-chain flows and derivative metrics show renewed investor interest in PEPE, with whales accumulating and exchange balances declining — factors that can support further upside. But meme coins remain highly volatile; crowded speculative positioning and rising futures OI raise liquidation risk if sentiment shifts. The 200-day EMA near $0.00000363 is the next meaningful technical gate that will help determine whether this rally can evolve into a sustained recovery. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news