Pudgy Penguins leads a new trend in NFTs with a market capitalization exceeding 1.8 billion USD.

NFT has once again returned to the public eye, attracting widespread follow.

The floor price of Pudgy Penguins NFT has surged nearly 35% in a week, reaching 12.75 ETH, approximately $38,000. Meanwhile, the price of the $PENGU token has rebounded nearly 10 times from its low, with a market cap surpassing $1.8 billion. This level of enthusiasm hasn't been seen in the NFT space for a long time.

Surprisingly, this price rebound was not driven by any trending topics or collective endorsements from opinion leaders. In fact, it all started with a well-coordinated "avatar change movement."

On July 12, several well-known crypto projects and platforms changed their social media avatars to a fat penguin theme. This action quickly triggered a market reaction, with the NFT floor price starting to rise and the trading volume of $PENGU surging, while the market's expectations for potential collaborations also heated up. Amid this wave of avatar changes, core members of the penguin community hinted at an imminent announcement of the most significant collaboration in Web3 history.

In fact, this is not the first time Pudgy Penguins has received such widespread industry support. On April 26th, World Penguin Day, multiple Web3 organizations jointly released a commemorative poster, which sparked a huge response. This collective action is not merely a simple internet cultural phenomenon; it is more like a statement of position: Pudgy Penguins has become part of the industry consensus.

Behind this collective support is the resource network that Pudgy Penguins has accumulated over the years in the industry. Its NFT holders are spread across major infrastructure projects, ecological public chains, and investment institutions, covering all corners of Web3. Some projects have even directly airdropped tokens to Pudgy Penguins' NFT holders.

The influence of Pudgy Penguins has permeated the traditional finance sector. Founded in 1955, investment management company VanEck not only changed its social media avatar to Pudgy Penguins in 2024, but also brought the chubby penguins to the Nasdaq stage on June 23 of this year, ringing the opening bell together.

Luca, the CEO of Pudgy Penguins, stated on social media: "Pudgy Penguins is the face of the crypto world." This statement does not seem to be an exaggeration.

Traditional finance often gives the impression of cold data and a serious institutional image, lacking emotional connection and visual appeal. However, Pudgy Penguins offers an image that is easy to understand without professional knowledge and is sufficiently attractive.

As the cryptocurrency industry gradually moves towards compliance and mainstream acceptance, Web3 needs an image that the general public, especially young people, can understand and accept. An image that is memorable, encourages purchases of related products, and can be integrated into product interfaces may have a greater impact on the future development of the industry than a new technological protocol.

The goal of Pudgy Penguins is not limited to the NFT or token market. Their ambition is greater, aiming for a higher positioning as the visual spokesperson for a new generation of financial narratives.

In the future, Pudgy Penguins may not only represent cryptocurrency but could also become a visual symbol for the entire financial sector.