Meme coins GME, AMC, ROAR rally as GameStop trader Keith Gill returns to X

GameStop and AMC-themed memecoins saw massive spikes after influencer Keith Gill, better known as Roaring Kitty, made a comeback on X.

GME (GME), a Solana-based meme coin with no ties to the American video game company, surged over 70% to $0.7672. The rally was accompanied by a 203% hike in its daily trading volume to $51.23 million.

GME (Ethereum), a similar meme coin on the Ethereum network, also benefited from Gill’s return, surging over 51% to hit an all-time high of $0.0002487 on Dec. 6. However, it has since dropped 21%, according to CoinGecko data.

Meanwhile, AMC, the meme coin created to mimic AMC Entertainment, a movie theater chain, rallied over 50%, while KITTY and ROAR, meme coins inspired by Gill’s online persona, both jumped over 45%.

All of the aforementioned meme coins rallied after Gill’s Dec. 6 X post, marking his first post on the platform in three months. The post featured an altered version of a 2006 Time magazine photo illustration that paid homage to YouTube.

Even though the post did not mention the tokens, the crypto sector has a history of responding to Gill’s posts with similar rallies, and this time was no exception.

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Gill’s influence on these meme coins stems from his role in the 2021 meme stock frenzy, where he became a symbol of retail traders’ uprising against Wall Street short-sellers. Known for his detailed analysis of GameStop’s potential and his viral posts, Gill played a pivotal role in the GameStop short squeeze that saw the stock skyrocket to over $81.

These gains come as the cryptocurrency sector seems to be pivoting towards altcoin season, as evidenced by the Altcoin Season Idex, which recently hit an all-time high of 87. An index score above 80 typically signals the onset of altcoin season.

However, investors need to be cautious as these gains are often short-lived. In May, the GME token rose from $0.0035 to $0.029 after Roaring Kitty’s return, only to erase all those gains within a few days. It dropped to a record low of $0.0017 in August.

Similarly, in September, these tokens rallied following Gill’s X post but lost almost all of the gains in a little over a week as the excitement waned.

Beyond the crypto space, Gill’s return pushed GameStop (GME) shares over 16% on the day, reaching a high of $30.87 before settling at $28.60, while AMC Entertainment (AMC) recorded a 12% jump to $5.55, according to Google Finance data.

Read more: ‘Roaring Kitty’ faces class-action lawsuit over alleged GameStop stock manipulation