One of the most interesting ICOs of the year, Pepe Unchained (PEPU), is nearing the $24m mark in its hugely successful presale.

Pepe Unchained is building the first meme coin Layer 2 ecosystem, ushering in a new era for joke tokens.

Averaging $1 million raised weekly as degen and utility-driven investors join in, Pepe Unchained could be one of the biggest meme coin launches in 2024.

PEPU Solves Core ETH Meme Coin Issues

The upcoming Pepe Unchained Layer 2 network seeks to provide 100x faster transaction speeds than Ethereum. Currently, ETH can process just 15 transactions per second, with relatively high gas fees, often causing missed trading opportunities and profit losses for traders.

PEPU plans to release its Layer 2 ecosystem with features such as instant bridging to ETH, a dedicated chain explorer, a DEX, and advanced analytics, with further components to be announced.

With its benefits and meme coin-oriented blockchain, PEPU may encourage investors to stay on ETH while avoiding its downsides, which is excellent news for meme coin developers.

The project has also launched its “Pepe Frens With Benefits” developer grants program, which aims to attract and reward developers who want to build on top of its Layer 2.

To apply, developers need to provide their information and a detailed project description, and the “Pepe Council” will determine grant recipients.

Thanks to the tremendous success of its presale, PEPU’s developers have already begun working on the project’s Layer 2 network, for which 12.5% of the total 8 billion token supply has been reserved.

They’ve recently shared an update showcasing a modern-looking, feature-rich testnet of the upcoming ecosystem.

Less Than a Day Remains Until PEPU’s Token Price Increases

Analyzing its tokenomics further reveals the project’s strong focus on early adoption. 70% of the total token supply is set aside for the presale and staking rewards, meaning there’s still ro