South Koreaâs largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit has added two new memecoins, Brett (BRETT) and Pepe (PEPE), to its USDT market.
This move aligns with Upbitâs strategy of expanding its services to support the rising popularity of memecoins in the crypto market. The listing has raised much interest, which has caused considerable fluctuations in the price of both tokens.
New Trading Pairs on Upbit: BRETT/USDT and PEPE/USDT
On August 20th, Upbit revealed that it will be adding BRETT and PEPE trading pairs with USDT, a stablecoin linked to the U.S. dollar.
The exchange has also allowed for free withdrawals of both tokens within the first 24 hours of trading to encourage trading activity. This offer is valid for a limited time only, as normal withdrawal fees will be charged after this time.
Upbit has stressed the need to use the right network for deposits and withdrawals. BRETT runs on the Base chain, while PEPE is developed on the Ethereum chain.
Consequently, users are encouraged to choose the correct network when making transactions to prevent transaction errors. According to the press release, if not, it may cause delays or problems with retrieving funds.
Brett (BRETT) and Its Market Impact
Brett (BRETT) is a memecoin launched on the Base chain in February 2024. The token is inspired by Brett, a character from Matt Furieâs comic book âBoyâs Club.â
Since its release, BRETT has aimed to establish itself as a cultural icon within the crypto industry, particularly as a mascot for the Base chain. Although the token currently lacks inherent utility, it is expected to develop use cases as its community grows.
After the listing on Upbit, the price of BRETT rose sharply. Within the first day, the tokenâs value rose by approximately 25% to $0.09318. Similarly, Binance, has listed a USDâ-Margined BRETT Perpetual Contract on its futures trading platform with up to 50x leverage.
It will provide traders with an opportunity to trade on the price of BRETT with high levels of margin, thereby increasing both their profits and losses.
Before Binance introduced the BRETT futures listing, an early BRETT holder with the wallet address 0x85âŠ528e moved 19.29M BRETT to Bybit at 15:59 UTC+8. This transfer, which was worth about $1.71 million, has captured interest because the holder reaped a lot of profit.
The holder initially bought 96.946 million BRETTs for 0.067 ETH or about $178 on 24th February. He has since sold them, making a profit of thousands of times the initial investment.
Pepe (PEPE) Gains Traction
Another memecoin listed by Upbit is Pepe (PEPE), which was launched in the market on the Ethereum network in April 2023. The token derives its name and persona from Pepe the Frog, a famous internet meme icon.
In this regard, PEPE wants to find its place in the market of memecoins and stand out from such popular dog-themed alternatives as Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB).
The listing of PEPE on Upbit also had an impact on the token market. The token saw an upward surge of over 13% immediately after the announcement but has pulled back slightly since then. At press time, PEPE is trading at $0.000007816, an 8% surge from the intra-day low.
Caution Advised for Traders
Additionally, the exchange has informed on the transaction limitations and the conditions of deposits associated with the listing of BRETT and PEPE.
In the first trading period, buying orders were prohibited for about five minutes, and selling orders at prices below 10% of the previous dayâs close were also prohibited. These measures will ensure that the market was not very volatile in the beginning of each trading period.
Upbit has also emphasized the significance of the Travel Rule that regulates the movement of digital assets. Deposits from exchanges that are not on the list of approved virtual asset operators may be subject to further checks. Furthermore, large amounts may require the sender to provide evidence of the source of the funds due to legal considerations.
