Summary:

• DOGE experienced price surges, reduced volatility. The community also planned an upcoming meme dog statue.
• Shiba Inu launched Shibarium, but later faced initial technical issues. However the protocol also witnessed Robinhood increase its SHIB holdings.
• Floki teased Valhalla gameplay and outlined Q4 developments whilst showing stability amid challenges.
• BABYDOGE introduced an AI Image Generator and proposed a significant token burn. Some BABYDOGE holders faced impacts from the CoinEx hack.
• PEPE experienced rapid growth, however later fell prey to internal team issues, and a controversial token transfer, leading to a market downturn.

Memecoin Mania: A Q3 2023 Review of DOGE, SHIB, PEPE, FLOKI, and BABYDOGE

Meme coins have carved out an exclusive niche for themselves in the world of cryptocurrencies. They've captured the imagination of investors, traders, and the wider crypto community, proving that sometimes, a little humor and creativity can go a long way in the blockchain space.

As we wrap up the third quarter of 2023, it's time to take a closer look at five prominent meme coins: Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), Pepe (PEPE), Floki (FLOKI), and BabyDoge (BABYDOGE). These tokens, each with unique identity and community, have continued to make headlines, surprise skeptics, and offer a glimpse into the ever-evolving landscape of cryptocurrencies. Here are the key updates from their ecosystems in Q3, 2023.

Recent Updates: Memecoin Roundup Q3 2023

DogeCoin: Price Surges and a Statue

DogeCoin's Q3 Performance: Dogecoin (DOGE) saw an multiple price surges in Q3, fueled by speculations of its role on the newly rebranded X platform. For instance, on July 24, within a 24-hour period, DOGE's price spiked by up to 10%, reaching over $0.077 with a trading volume of $2.3 billion. This surge was largely attributed to activity on the South Korean exchange UpBit, which is known for speculative trading against the Korean won.

Volatility Comparison: Surprisingly, DOGE's volatility levels dwindled during September to the point where it was more stable than Bitcoin. On September 22, DOGE's annualized 30-day realized volatility was recorded at 30%, notably lower than Bitcoin's 35%, according to CoinDesk. This decrease in volatility could be a sign of growing maturity in the meme cryptocurrency.

Honoring the 'Doge' Meme: A DogeCoin community collaborated with local governments to install a statue in Sakura, Japan. This statue, set to be unveiled on November 2 (Kabosu's birthday), pays homage to the dog that inspired the meme. DOGE, with an $8.3 billion market cap and $167.23 million trading volume, is currently trading at $0.05886.

Shiba Inu: Shibarium Launch and Robinhood's Holdings

Shibarium Goes Live: Q3, 2023, was marked by the launch of Shibarium, Shiba Inu's layer-2 blockchain, on August 17. Shibarium, operating as an Ethereum layer-2 network, employs SHIB tokens as fees. 

Initial Hiccups and Resilience: However, Shibarium faced initial technical issues, causing approximately $1.7 million in ETH to become locked in the Shibarium cross-chain bridge temporarily. The launch also suffered from a "non-functional" RPC system, an unsatisfactory blockchain explorer, and a subpar user experience for the SHIB community. Despite these challenges, Shibarium relaunched successfully, attracting 1.25 million wallets and facilitating over 3 million transactions within a few weeks of relaunch.

Robinhood's Significant Holdings: Robinhood, a major asset holdings company, significantly bolstered its Shiba Inu holdings during Q3, adding 15 trillion SHIB tokens worth $108 million. This strategic move elevated Robinhood to the position of the fifth-largest Shiba Inu custodian, holding a total of 35 trillion SHIB tokens worth approximately $252 million.

HSBC Accepts SHIB for Mortgage Payments: From Sept. 26, HSBC started accepting Shiba Inu (SHIB) for mortgage payments as part of a groundbreaking move. The integration, facilitated by blockchain payment processor FCF Pay, enables HSBC customers to make mortgage payments with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and SHIB.

BONE's Transformation: Shiba Inu's gas fee token, Bone ShibSwap (BONE), underwent a transformation. The SHIB Token developer team renounced it, opening doors for potential listings on major exchanges. This action capped BONE's max supply at 250,000,000 tokens, removing previous governance restrictions and paving the way for broader adoption and trading.

Floki: Valhalla Gameplay and Upcoming Plans

Valhalla Open World Gameplay: While there haven't been many new updates from the Floki ecosystem, the team recently introduced Valhalla Open World gameplay. This development allows participants in the Floki ecosystem to explore the Valhalla virtual world. Players can hunt for Veras and engage in daily quests, providing a glimpse into the emerging Metaverse game, currently in the testnet phase.

Q4 Developments: Floki core team member B outlined upcoming developments for Q4, including the launch of Valhalla metaverse mainnet, staking, upgrades for the FlokiFi Locker, and the introduction of a mysterious protocol named Project TL.

Other Updates: Floki is listed on KuCoin, one of the top cryptocurrency exchanges. The listing extends Floki's utility and accessibility to millions of users across 200 countries. Furthermore, Floki's followers on X surpassed the 500,000 mark. 

Baby DogeCoin: AI Image Generator and Token Burning

AI Image Generator: Baby DogeCoin introduced its AI Image Generator on September 19th, allowing users to create unique NFTs. This innovative utility enables users to acquire credits, serving as the currency for minting NFTs directly on the Baby Doge platform. Users can generate AI-generated 2D and 3D NFTs, along with BabyDoge memes. Importantly, a portion of the fees generated from these NFT activities contributes to burning Baby Doge tokens, enhancing the coin's scarcity and potential value.

Token Burning Proposal: Just ahead of the AI unveiling, Baby DogeCoin proposed a major token burn. This proposal sought to burn over 5 quadrillion BABYDOGE tokens, which would reduce the circulating supply by nearly 50% at current levels. 

However, implementing this proposal required sacrificing a significant portion of liquidity pool tokens. Investors initially panicked, resulting in a 4% price drop in just hours.

CoinEx Hack Impact: In the aftermath of the CoinEx hack, BabyDoge holders faced potential losses of $2-3 million as stolen tokens flooded PancakeSwap. CoinEx, a crypto exchange, suffered a hack on September 12, with an estimated loss of $54 million. CoinEx responded by transferring its remaining crypto assets from its hot wallet to a secure cold wallet.

PepeCoin: Internal Strife and a Mysterious Transaction

Initial Growth and Issues: PepeCoin experienced rapid growth, with over 1000% gains in a matter of days in May. However, internal team issues emerged as the initial excitement surrounding a potential Binance listing waned. 

On August 24, the community was startled by the revelation that a multi-signature $PEPE wallet, initially requiring five signatures for access, had been altered to grant access with just two signatures.

This alteration led to the swift transfer of around 16 trillion $PEPE tokens from the compromised wallet to centralized exchanges (CEXs), resulting in a $100 million market capitalization drop. Official $PEPE sources remained silent, leaving investors and enthusiasts perplexed.

It was later revealed that the wallet alteration was not a security breach but a deliberate move by some PEPE team members. Despite efforts to reassure the community, skepticism prevailed, and many investors questioned the official narrative, speculating that the team had orchestrated the sale to profit from the event.

Following these events, $PEPE faced a steep decline in both market capitalization and price. It plummeted by more than 85% from its all-time high, currently trading at $0.0000006643.

From DOGE's remarkable price surges and surprising stability to SHIB's Shibarium launch and Robinhood's strategic holdings, this quarter was marked by resilience, innovation and also multiple issues. 

However, as we reflect on Q3, 2023, it's evident that meme cryptocurrencies continue to captivate the crypto community, proving that innovation can thrive in the ever-evolving blockchain space. When it comes to memecoins, it is wise to do your research before investing as they are highly volatile and risky assets.