TL;DR

Bitcoin (BTC) surged to approximately $103K after a severe dip, with analysts anticipating a new price discovery phase and potential record highs. Shytoshi Kusama stepped down as Shiba Inus lead developer, sparking mixed reactions. Their announcement coincided with a brief plunge in SHIBs price. Most meme coins are in the green today (January 28), but Pudgy Penguins dropped 16%, raising concerns about a possible rug pull.

BTC Returns to Green Territory

The primary cryptocurrency witnessed a rather quiet weekend during which its price hovered in the $104,000-$105,000 range. However, the bears took control on January 27, suppressing the valuation below $98,000. 

However, the plunge was short-lived, and Bitcoin (BTC) saw its price pump by over five grand in the last several hours. Currently, it trades at around $102,800 (per CoinGeckos data), while its market capitalization has once again exceeded $2 trillion.

BTC Price, Source: CoinGecko According to X user Rekt Capital, the latest surge could be followed by the beginning of the second phase of price discovery, which may result in a new all-time high. 

BTC has most likely completed its 1st Price Discovery Correction History, which suggests over the next two weeks Bitcoin should be able to embark on its second Price Discovery Uptrend to new highs, the analyst suggested.

Other popular industry participants who recently chipped in include Crypto Tony and Captain Faibik. The former envisioned a major rally if BTCs price breaks above $106,000, while the latter predicted a new peak of $120,000. 

Whats New Around SHIB?

The popular meme coin was among the worst-affected cryptocurrencies during the market decline at the start of the business week. One important factor that may have intensified its plunge is Shytoshi Kusamas decision to step down from their active role within the team as the lead visionary.

They explained, There is no more vision needed, only execution and communications. Kusama revealed they will now serve as lead ambassador of Shiba Inu.

My job moving forward will be to guide projects interested in building with the 36 Chambers of Tech (rebranded to ShibOS simply because there are more than 36 now) and helping them implement global solutions at all levels with our technologies, they added.

Kusamas announcement led to some controversial responses. While some X users thanked them for their actions while serving as lead developer, others mentioned some of the projects failures and blamed them for potentially running away.

It is worth noting that the statement should not be considered a huge surprise. After all, Kusama and Kaal Dhairya (another well-known Shiba Inu developer) previously said that they would step back by the end of 2024 and hand full control over to the community. 

Back then, Kusama claimed that the development was not about abandoning the project but rather empowering the community even more than they already have.

Meanwhile, Shiba Inus price has recovered from its local bottom and is currently worth around $0.00001896 (per CoinGeckos data). This represents a 6% increase on a daily scale.

SHIB Price, Source: CoinGecko

What About the Other Memes?

SHIB is not the only meme coin charting significant gains in the last 24 hours. Its biggest rival Dogecoin (DOGE) has spiked by 6.5%, while Official Trump (TRUMP), SPX6900 (SPX), MEOW (MEOW), Gigachad (GIGA), and others have soared by double digits.

On the other hand, Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) is one of the few suffering a substantial decrease. Its price has plummeted by 16% on a daily scale, with some X users suggesting there has been a rug pull scenario in place.