ApeCoin Soars 30% in Q2 as Unveils Radical ApeCo Governance Model

• ApeCoin’s market cap surged 30.1% in Q2 2025, outpacing Ethereum’s gains.
• Staking rewards climbed 7.5% QoQ, led by BAYC and MAYC holders.
• Governance shifts from ApeCoin DAO to ApeCo under AIP-596.

Messari’s State of ApeCoin Q2 2025 report shows a strong quarter for APE. The circulating market cap rose from $375.7 million at the end of Q1 to $488.9 million in Q2, marking a 30.1% jump. The token price mirrored this increase, moving from $0.47 to $0.61. At its peak on June 10, the market cap reached $592.1 million, with APE priced at $0.74.

This performance slightly outpaced Ethereum’s growth, which posted a 27.1% rise over the same quarter. The report highlights ApeCoin’s ability to maintain momentum despite a broader slowdown in new holder adoption.

Trading activity on decentralized exchanges reached $16.6 million. Most of the activity came from Seal wallets, holding between $100,000 and $500,000 in APE, which contributed $6.7 million. Shark wallets, with $1–10 million in holdings, followed closely at $6.1 million.

Together, these two groups made up over 75% of all activity. Fish wallets accounted for $2.7 million, while Krill wallets, holding less than $10,000 in APE, added $951,000. Larger holders, such as Dolphins and Whales, represented less than 1.2% of total volume.

Staking Rewards Climb with NFT Holders Leading

Staking rewards continued to expand in Q2. ApeCoin DAO distributed 4.1 million APE, up 7.5% from the previous quarter’s 3.8 million. BAYC holders claimed the largest share with 2.7 million APE, representing 66.4% of all rewards. This was unchanged from Q1, showing their steady dominance.

MAYC holders bumped up their claims to 1.1 million APE from 781,600 in Q1, while BAKC holders doubled their aggregate sum, claiming 222,327 APE. Conversely, APE tokenholders who are not part of the NFT ecosystem reduced their claims, taking 143,153 APE compared to 207,524 in Q1.

The greatest one-day yields were witnessed on April 15, and they reached 633,306 APE. The increase came after ApeCoin’s statement announcing the activation of NFT staking rewards, having gone live in ApeChain, and this elicited instant participation.

AIP-596 Passes, Ending ApeCoin DAO Governance

The AIP-596 was voted in successfully during the significant structure shift during the quarter in Q2. It was introduced by Yuga Labs CEO Greg Solano and received 3,173 votes. It ends the ApeCoin DAO system and transfers the complete governance, assets, and operating control to ApeCo, a newly formed entity by Yuga Labs.

The move was for the purpose of addressing inefficiencies, low-value pitches, and implementation challenges for long-term strategies. With the new structure, ApeCo would oversee funding requests based on milestones, internal product development projects, and strategic projects associated with ApeChain, BAYC, and Otherside.

Millions in fiat currency, tokens, and intellectual property assets will transfer to ApeCo. The restructuring marks the end of the DAO era and the beginning of a move toward faster execution and better resource allocation in the ApeCoin ecosystem.

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