PEPE price surged 6%, defying market turmoil after Bybit’s $1.4 billion hack—could this be the start of a major rebound?
PEPE rebounds 6% as traders bet on Ethereum gains from Bybit Hack
PEPE suffered considerable losses on Friday, mirroring the $75 billion crypto market capitulation in the aftermath of the Bybit hack. The Bybit exploit, linked to the notorious Lazarus Group, saw the exchange lose over 400,000 ETH—worth approximately $1.4 billion at the time of the breach.
Given that the stolen funds were in ETH, Ethereum-hosted assets like PEPE bore the brunt of the sell-off. PEPE’s price plummeted by 10% on Friday, while rival meme coins such as Dogecoin and Solana’s Dogwifhat (WIF) contained their losses below 5% in the immediate hours following the hack.
PEPE Price Action, Feb 22, 2025 | Source: TradingView
However, the broader crypto industry quickly rallied to provide support. Binance transferred over 50,000 ETH to Bybit, helping to stabilize liquidity for traders seeking withdrawals. Additionally, Bybit’s CEO reassured users about the safety of their funds.
These interventions appear to have averted a systemic market collapse reminiscent of previous exchange mishaps, such as the FTX crash, which saw global crypto market capitalization shrink by nearly 50% within 10 days.
However, 24 hours of the Bybit hack, PEPE price showed early signs of recovery, climbing 6% to reclaim the $0.00009 level at press time.
Bulls bet $9M on PEPE rally as analysts hint at Ethereum buy-back to offset Bybit losses
At press time, the Bybit exploit remains unresolved, with the stolen funds still sitting in a series of cold wallets identified by Arkham Intelligence. While Bybit’s security team collaborates with law enforcement agencies, speculation has emerged over how the exchange might recover the stolen assets.
Some market analysts suggest that Bybit may be forced to repurchase the equivalent of the stolen ETH to reimburse customers and balance its books. Prominent analyst Ash Crypto echoed this view while alerting his 1.6 million followers on X (formerly Twitter) about the hack on Friday:
“BYBIT hacker can’t sell $1.45 billion ETH for USDC or USDT because it will get frozen by Circle or Tether. So he just took $1.46 billion selling pressure from ETH. For BYBIT to cover customer ETH, they will have to buy $1.46 billion worth of ETH from (the) market.”
— Ash Crypto, (Analyst) Feb. 21, 2025
With approximately 120 million ETH in circulation, the 400,000 ETH stolen from Bybit represents about 3% of total supply. If Bybit moves to repurchase the stolen ETH from the open market, it could significantly constrain available liquidity, potentially triggering a sharp price surge for Ethereum and other ecosystem tokens.
Meanwhile, PEPE’s 6% price recovery appears to be bolstered by aggressive positioning in the derivatives market. Data from Coinglass, a leading on-chain analytics platform, suggests that strategic traders are already speculating on a continued rebound.
PEPE Liquidation Map, Feb 22, 2025 | Coinglass
Coinglass’ liquidation heatmaps track the total capital deployed in leveraged long and short positions for specific assets, providing real-time insights into shifts in market sentiment. As the broader market stabilized, PEPE traders aggressively built up long positions.
The latest data indicates that PEPE long positions have reached $9 million, significantly outpacing short positions at just $2.9 million—a disparity of nearly 70%.
This substantial leverage gap implies that, as the market recovery unfolds, short traders may be reluctant to cover their positions, further fueling upside momentum.
While PEPE remains below the $0.000010 threshold and has yet to fully erase its 10% losses from the Friday crash, the growing long interest suggests sustained bullish momentum in the days ahead.
If Ethereum’s price action strengthens due to anticipated buy-backs, PEPE’s recovery phase could gain additional traction, positioning it for further upside.
PEPE Price Forecast: Close Above $0.000011 Could Kickstart Recovery Phase
PEPE price forecast suggests an emerging recovery phase as the Ethereum-hosted memecoin rebounds 6% following Friday’s sharp drop triggered by the Bybit hack.
The chart shows a notable shift in momentum, with PEPE rising above the Volume-Weighted Average Price (VWAP) at $0.00000948, indicating that recent buyers have been willing to pay slightly higher prices to secure their positions.
This suggests competitive demand, with traders positioning ahead of a potential full recovery to pre-Bybit crash levels.
PEPE Price Forecast
The daily candlestick structure presents a mixed outlook. The lower Bollinger Band has provided dynamic support, preventing deeper declines, while PEPE’s latest green candle signals an early attempt at a trend reversal. However, a confirmed breakout above the upper Donchian Channel resistance at $0.00001144 is crucial to sustain a bullish continuation. A close above this level could accelerate momentum, driving prices toward the $0.00001200 resistance.
On the downside, failure to hold above VWAP could invite another wave of selling, potentially retesting Friday’s lows near $0.00000796. The volume delta remains negative overall, suggesting sellers are still present, but the uptick in green bars during the daily time frame signals a bump in PEPE spot market liquidity as buying interest gradually returns. If bulls maintain dominance in the derivatives markets, PEPE could regain lost ground, solidifying its recovery phase.
The post PEPE Price Rebounds 6% as Analyst Predicts Ethereum Gains from Bybit Losses appeared first on CoinGape.
