Pepe GIFs Go Missing On GIPHY. Are RarePepe NFTs to Blame?

Pepe the Frog’s gifs have gone missing from the online gif database and search engine Giphy. Many Twitter users are questioning whether this removal is related to the popularity of RarePepe NFTs.

What are the RarePepe NFTs?

Pepe the Frog originated in 2005 as an anthropomorphic frog meme. The Internet meme, created by Matt Furie, went viral in 2008 when it was popularized by 4chan, Myspace and Gaia Online.

In 2015, a group of Pepe memes began to be called “rare Pepes,” because Furie had not publicly posted them before. That April, the rare Pepes were listed on eBay, where they reached a whopping $99,166. In 2016, the first rare Pepes were mined on Bitcoin in block 428919, pre-dating NFTs.

The RarePepe NFTs are now a bonafide collection on the CounterParty platform. They are so popular that a rare Pepe – PEPENOPOULOS – was sold at a Sotheby’s auction for $3.6 million on October 26, 2021.

Matt Furie reclaims Pepe The Frog

Despite Pepe the Frog’s association with the alt-right movement, Furie tried to reclaim Pepe the Frog’s original image and vision. In 2021, he dropped 100 limited edition NFT tokens. One of the NFTs from this collection sold for 10.7 ETH or $20,000.

Some Twitter users have criticized Furie for making a fortune off Pepe the Frog due to its association with Neo-Nazism. They noted that Pepe the Frog NFTs are encouraging Neo-Nazi individuals to disseminate alt-right images. Others, however, are applauding Furie for reclaiming his character; especially after it unintentionally became a symbol of hate.

It is safe to say that, despite the bad connotations, there is a huge demand for Pepe the Frog and RarePepe NFTs.  Recently, a Rare Pepe Nakamoto Series 1 card was sold at the NFT.NYC conference for $500,000. Although unconfirmed, it is very likely that these NFTs have led Giphy to remove Pepe the Frog gifs due to copyright claims.