Thread by @ivnrin

Translation of a great thread by @0xKillTheWolf on origins of Pepe's presence in crypto space.

Discovering an Ancient PepeCoin Token Born in 2016

A Thread👇

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A battle for Pepe is brewing.

It began with a #PepeCoin claiming to be the most authentic Pepe token, born in 2016, while the recently popular #Pepe was created in April this year.

- On the left is #Pepe token @pepecoineth
- On the right is #PepeCoin token @pepecoins

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We're all familiar with the recently popular #Pepe.

But who exactly is this #PepeCoin?

Curiosity piqued, I investigated the background of #PepeCoin and now present to you the history behind this token, which claims to have been born in 2016.

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PepeCoin was born in March 2016

Instead of issuing tokens through smart contracts on Ethereum, PepeCoin, like DogeCoin, built its own POW blockchain.

Here is an ancient tweet from when PepeCoin was born 👇

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https://twitter.com/pepecoins/status/711919122012053504?s=20

We can still view information on the PepeCoin blockchain through a blockchain explorer.

The PepeCoin blockchain is stable, with blocks being mined and running smoothly.

- PepeCoin blockchain explorer: explorer.memetic.ai

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Early on, purchasing PepeCoin was difficult.

@BittrexExchange was the first centralized exchange to list PepeCoin, so most early transactions took place there.

Otherwise, one could only buy through OTC.

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On March 15th, 2017

Ethereum founder @VitalikButerin once tweeted teasingly about PepeCoins.

Here is the tweet from back then 👇

https://twitter.com/VitalikButerin/status/841882612704653312

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Aug '17, Kekdaq launched.
@kekdaq is a product of PepeCoin, allowing users to create and trade image art by burning PepeCoin ( today's #NFT).
Kekdaq came earlier than @CryptoKitties and @EtherRock.
Kekdaq aligns with PepeCoin's meme culture, creating and sharing memes.
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@CoinMarketCap's price tracking for PepeCoin dates back to March 15th, 2016.

From this perspective, PepeCoin is indeed one of the earliest and still surviving memecoins, besides DogeCoin.

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In 2016, PepeCoin faced a major challenge.

"white supremacists" and "alt-righters" began using Pepe as a tool to promote their ideology.

Situation escalated when @realDonaldTrump tweeted a "Trump-version Pepe" meme. Pepe became associated with "white supremacy."

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Hillary @HillaryClinton also pointed out that Pepe was a symbol related to "white supremacy"

She accused Trump's campaign of maliciously spreading Pepe memes

The Anti-Defamation League @ADL listed Pepe as a hate symbol (though not all Pepe memes were tied to racism)

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Pepe's creator @Matt_Furie was heartbroken by the situation.

This was not his original intention for creating Pepe.

So he decided to kill off Pepe through a comic strip.

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In this political climate, although the PepeCoin community did not promote any racist ideas,

Due to public opposition,

@BittrexExchange stated that PepeCoin would face delisting if it didn't change its name.

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After community discussions, the decision was made to rename "PepeCoin" to "Memetic".

Symbol changed from $PEPE to $MEME

This ensured the long-term survival of PepeCoin.

Tweet requesting CMC to update the name👇

https://twitter.com/pepecoins/status/715350680840437761

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On July 22, 2017, PepeCoin introduced MasterToads.

Lock 15,000 $MEME to become a PepeCoin network masternode and earn token rewards.

Over 200 masternodes were operating on the blockchain, distributed across several countries, greatly enhancing network security.

👇

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On February 23, 2018, PepeCoin blockchain underwent a hard fork.

PepeCoin transitioned from POW to POS blockchain.

Here is the tweet announcing the completion of the hard fork👇

https://twitter.com/pepecoins/status/966730050652524544

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On Apr 29, '23 team bridged PepeCoin to Ethereum using UTXO lockups and named the Ethereum-based PepeCoin $PEPE

This created two types of tokens:
- $MEME PepeCoin on the PepeCoin blockchain
- $PEPE PepeCoin on the Ethereum blockchain

Lock up $MEME issue ERC-20 $PEPE

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In recent days, the two communities began fighting for the Pepe image, and a smokeless Pepe battle seems to have silently commenced.

On one side is the billion-dollar market cap, widely listed #Pepe; on the other, the ancient #OGPEPE from '16.

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