‘Walmart toy coin’ outpaces Bitcoin even as it hits all-time high

Bitcoin just surged to a record-smashing $116,000. But if you’re looking for the real breakout star of the day, it’s a penguin.

That’s right. Pudgy Penguins’ token, PENGU, is soaring past nearly everything in sight. While Bitcoin is up 5% in the past 24 hours, PENGU has rocketed nearly 28%, making it one of the day’s biggest gainers among large-cap altcoins.

So what exactly is PENGU?

PENGU is the memecoin tied to the popular Pudgy Penguins NFT brand. You may have seen their cutesy avatars on X or even on shelves at Walmart, where Pudgy Penguins plushies and toys have become a surprising hit. The brand is leaning hard into mainstream culture, and crypto traders are clearly buying the hype—literally.

The token's market cap now tops $1.2 billion, putting it ahead of more established names like Fantom and Flow. With over $1 billion in 24-hour trading volume, PENGU is showing signs of momentum.

It’s not alone, either. Other memecoins are also on fire today. FARTCOIN is up more than 16%, BONK has jumped nearly 12%, and WIF is riding an 11% gain. Even PEPE is climbing close to 10%.

But the penguin is the king today.

For context, Ethereum is up 8.3%, and Solana is tacking on around 4.4%. Not bad—but PENGU is lapping them all.