PENGU outperformed the broader crypto market on Tuesday, staging a short-term rebound after the Pudgy Penguins brand appeared on the Las Vegas Sphere, one of the world’s most prominent advertising venues.
The token has been under pressure for most of December, falling more than 18% since Dec. 10 amid a wider market slowdown.
That trend briefly reversed after the Pudgy Penguins campaign went live on the LED-covered dome on Dec. 24. From its local low, PENGU climbed roughly 7.5% before giving back some gains.
At the time of writing, PENGU was still up more than 6% over the past 24 hours, outperforming major cryptocurrencies including Ethereum, BNB, XRP, and Solana, which were largely flat or posted marginal gains of between 0% and 2%.
Pudgy Penguins is a digital collectibles brand launched in 2021, best known for its collection of 8,888 uniquely generated penguin NFTs. Despite a cooling NFT market in recent months, the project has remained one of the more visible and commercially active brands in the sector.
PENGU serves as the official utility and governance token for the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem. It functions as a social currency within the brand, offering access to digital experiences, in-game rewards, and future governance participation.
Pudgy Penguins joins exclusive group on the Sphere
The Las Vegas Sphere is a high-profile entertainment venue featuring the largest programmable LED display in the world, drawing millions of visitors and extensive online attention. An appearance on the structure is considered rare due to its selective advertising policy.
Pudgy Penguins is only the second crypto-native brand to secure a Sphere placement. The only other crypto campaign to date was run by Crypto.com, which displayed the Bitcoin logo on the venue last year.
Other projects have attempted similar campaigns without success. Earlier this year, the team behind meme coin Dogwifhat raised around $700,000 through crowdfunding to pursue a Sphere advertisement, but failed to secure approval due to venue restrictions.
In an interview with CoinDesk, Pudgy Penguins’ chief of strategy and brand, Vedant Mangaldas, said the project spent approximately $500,000 on the campaign, which began on Dec. 24 and is set to run for several days.
“It’s sort of showing that a crypto project can exceed and go out of crypto, touch the hearts and minds of everyday consumers,” Mangaldas said.
Previous mainstream exposure boosted PENGU
This is not the first time PENGU has reacted positively to high-profile exposure. In September, the token jumped more than 10% after the Pudgy Penguins team revealed that PENGU had been referenced during the Q2 earnings report and conference call of NYSE-listed Bullish.
While the latest rally remains modest in the context of PENGU’s broader December decline, market observers note that the reaction highlights the token’s sensitivity to mainstream brand visibility at a time when overall crypto trading activity remains subdued.
