Musk’s decision to adopt the Kekius Maximus persona on the X platform on December 31 triggered a strong rally in the corresponding meme coin, with its ERC-20 token soaring 21,660%, according to CoinGecko data.

While multiple Kekius-themed meme coins have popped up on Solana, it’s the ERC-20 token Kekius Maximus ($KEKIUS) that has captured the attention of most investors.

According to data from CoinGecko, the token’s market capitalization has soared to $343.67 million, with one-day trading volume reaching $219.27 million, accounting for approximately 64% of the token’s total value. Currently, the number of wallets holding $KEKIUS exceeds 22,000, demonstrating its broad acceptance among investors.

Although $KEKIUS initially rose significantly, demand remained strong, rising as much as 110.67% in one day.

While Musk has yet to reveal a direct connection to these meme coins, his adoption of the Kekius persona has attracted widespread attention.

The origin of this meme can be traced back to X platform user @ALX, who first shared multiple artificial intelligence-generated character images inspired by the meme cartoon "Pepe the Frog."

The frenzy surrounding $KEKIUS has also been accompanied by a significant increase in the price of Ethereum gas. According to data from Etherscan.io, average gas charges doubled from 5 gwei to 10 gwei on December 31, before recently falling back to 8 gwei. This spike indicates an increase in activity on the Ethereum network and may be related to transactions in $KEKIUS and other related meme coins.

Despite the impressive gains, $KEKIUS’s rally appears to be fading. The Uniswap chart in $WETH shows the coin peaking four hours ago before beginning a steady decline.

Early buyers are cashing in big gains, further causing the uptrend to weaken.

Technical indicators such as the Relative Strength Index (RSI) are showing lower highs on the hourly chart, indicating that although the price continues to rise, momentum is fading.

Investors should remain cautious as these signals suggest that early long positions may be subject to larger profit-taking. For those looking to purchase $KEKIUS, it is crucial to verify the contract address of the token to avoid being scammed.

The proliferation of meme coins, driven by the popularity of simple minting protocols like Pump.fun or Solana’s upcoming Pump Pad, has made it increasingly difficult for novice traders to identify legitimate projects.

The success of Kekius Maximus has revived interest in other Pepe-themed assets such as OG Pepe ($PEPE), Pepe Unchained ($PEPU), and Wall Street Pepe ($WEPE). These tokens may benefit from the growing popularity of the Kekius meme and its associated coins.