Meme cryptocurrency has witnessed a sudden market boom as the price of Dogecoin (DOGE) started to climb sharply on Monday.
The primary cause of the price surge is a random Elon Musk decision to change a Twitter icon within the user dashboard to Dogecoin.
As a result, DOGE surged by over 22% at the time of writing, as the price of the cryptocurrency soared from $0.077 to $0.097 in minutes.
As the hype around the news mount, approximately $1.7 billion has been pumped into Dogecoin’s market capitalization in an extremely short period of time pushing the meme coin’s market cap to reach $12.76 billion, the highest figure since December 2022.
Elon Musk’s interest in Dogecoin
Elon Musk’s interest in Dogecoin can be traced back to his tweets about the cryptocurrency in early 2021. He initially tweeted “Doge” and posted a meme with the Dogecoin logo, which caused the value of the cryptocurrency to surge by over 50%.
Since then, Musk has been a vocal supporter of Dogecoin, referring to himself as the “Dogefather” and regularly tweeting about the cryptocurrency. In May 2021, he even mentioned Dogecoin during his appearance on Saturday Night Live, which caused the value of the cryptocurrency to plummet.
Despite the volatility, Musk has continued to express his interest in Dogecoin, stating that he believes it has the potential to become the currency of the internet and even suggesting that SpaceX may accept Dogecoin as payment for its services.
Many have speculated on why Musk is so interested in Dogecoin, with some suggesting that it’s simply a joke or a way to troll the cryptocurrency market. However, Musk has stated that he genuinely believes in the potential of Dogecoin, particularly as a way to facilitate peer-to-peer transactions.
He has also highlighted the community aspect of Dogecoin, which he sees as a positive force for promoting inclusivity and fun in the cryptocurrency world. While some critics have dismissed Musk’s interest in Dogecoin as a distraction from his more serious endeavors, others see it as an indication of his unconventional and forward-thinking approach to business and innovation.
Check the latest Dogecoin price here.