Coinbase and OpenSea catalyzed a market frenzy by simultaneously changing their X (formerly Twitter) profile pictures to Pudgy Penguins NFTs on July 12, 2025. Coinbase’s shift—accompanied by the quip "new pfp, who dis"—occurred during a brief account takeover by pseudonymous influencer AlexOnChain, who was subsequently hired as Coinbase's first full-time "Crypto Twitter Lead." Alex stated the move aims to make communications "more social native—direct, transparent, and engaging."
The immediate impact was dramatic: PENGU, the native token of the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem, surged over 60% before a partial correction, though it retained a 35% weekly gain. Concurrently, the NFT collection’s floor price leapt from ~9 ETH to 11.58 ETH, with 24-hour trading volume spiking 690%, per NFTPriceFloor data. The rally intensified as the U.S. SEC acknowledged Canary Capital’s filing for a spot PENGU ETF.
Industry-wide endorsement followed, with VanEck, MoonPay, and AwakenTax adopting Pudgy Penguin avatars. Analysts interpret the coordinated branding as a strategic validation of Pudgy Penguins’ "blue-chip" status, citing its 8,888-NFT collection, robust community ("The Huddle"), real-world toy lines, and resilience during bear markets. OpenSea’s participation signals a pivot toward NFT-integrated brand identities in Web3 marketing, emphasizing community alignment over traditional advertising.