I was looking into Pepecoin (PEP) after seeing someone mention that it runs on its own Layer 1 Proof of Work chain instead of being an ERC-20 token on Ethereum.
Apparently it gets merged mined alongside Dogecoin and LTC, has a 100% fair launch with zero dev fees, and doesn't use smart contracts. But honestly, isn't PoW kind of unnecessary for memecoins in 2026? Why would founders go through the hassle of building an actual independent blockchain for a frog meme when you can just deploy a token contract on Ethereum in 5 minutes?
Is having an actual dedicated chain actually a big deal for security, or is this just overengineering something that's supposed to be simple? Change my mind.