Following the controversial death of Peanut the Squirrel, memecoins themed after Peanut have surged on Solana, with some hitting market caps of more than $100 million.
Memecoins, riding the sudden rise in popularity of “Peanut the Squirrel,” has hit the Solana decentralized finance (DeFi) markets, with some tokens even reaching a market capitalization above $120 million.
Mark Longo, the owner of Peanut’s social media account with over 600,000, wrote that on Oct. 30, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation confiscated and euthanized the popular squirrel and a raccoon named “Fred.” This follows complaints of alleged unsafe housing for Peanut. Longo wrote on Instagram:
Longo said he first rescued the squirrel about seven years ago after seeing Peanut’s mother get hit by a car. Because of an injury, Longo deemed that Peanut couldn’t survive in the wild. Because of this, Peanut nursed him back to health and became his caretaker.
