A memecoin based on Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin skyrocketed in value Monday, as the key Vatican figure surfaced as a strong contender to succeed the late Pope Francis.
What happened: The Solana SOL/USD-based token POPE was up 770% in the last 24 hours, running into a market capitalization of $260,930, according to CoinMarketCap.
Similarly, a memecoin themed on Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, another high-ranking clergy of the Catholic Church, shot up to 1012% in the last 24 hours.
Note that the two tokens operated at a thin liquidity and could only be traded on Raydium, a Solana-based decentralized exchange. Furthermore, CoinMarketCap released a disclaimer stating that the memecoins were yet to be verified and advised traders to DYOR.
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Why It Matters: The rally coincided with growing speculation over who would take the position of the global head of the Catholic Church, which was left vacant after Pope Francis died at the age of 88.
Cryptocurrency bettors placed the highest odds of 34% in favor of Cardinal Parolin, followed by 23% for Cardinal Tagle, according to Polymarket. More than $3 million has already been wagered on the outcome.
Moreover, the odds that a European would be the next Pope were 65%, according to a separate betting contract, while the chances of an Asian becoming the supreme pontiff were 22%.
Notably, Cardinal Parolin is from Italy, while Cardinal Tagle is a Filipino.
Benzinga Note: Investing in meme coins is highly speculative and involves significant risk. Meme coins often lack intrinsic value and are driven by market sentiment, social media trends, and speculative trading.
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