How much could an internet mime, a picture or a joke cost? This is an issue that has taken on a whole new meaning in recent months, with something like this being able to reach cosmic levels (literally) and cost billions of dollars.
To be more precise, it is about 80-100 billion dollars. This is the total capitalization of one of the most current cryptocurrencies at the moment – Dogecoin.
After all, how did it all start and what does Dogecoin mean in general?
The beginning is somewhere in the distant 2013, when cryptocurrencies began to gain momentum, and bitcoin is still far from its current astronomical values. Then two software engineers decided that they could create their own currency as an alternative to bitcoin, which would be able to reach a wider audience.
In fact, the joke begins simply as a joke and a parody of the whole hysteria over cryptocurrencies, and to make it even more fun, Billy Marcus and Jackson Palmer use as a “face” of their currency the popular and comical mime with the Shiba Inu dog revolves around the Internet against the background of funny and often completely meaningless texts.
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The first transactions with the currency Dogecoin became a reality in early 2014, and their value seems absurdly low against the background of today’s electronic currency market. At the time of its appearance, a unit of Dogecoin cost only 0.001540753 dollars, and today its value is about 50 cents, which means more than 30,000 percent growth in eight years.
Unlike bitcoin and a very large part of other currencies, Dogecoin has no limit on the units that can enter into circulation. It also has no claim to be more than a joke. Behind it is no revolutionary technology or anything other than a strange and fun community of fans.
Over time, this community has gradually grown, although the currency itself is of interest to fraudsters, who often take advantage of the vulnerability of Dogecoin.
So earlier this year, its value was less than a cent, until one of the richest people in the world, Elon Musk, intervened.
In fact, the CEO of Tesla began to show interest in Dogecoin as early as 2019. Initially, his posts on Twitter were mostly funny, but after each mention of the currency, its value began to rise. So within a few months, Musk’s comments began to be more specific, with him even saying it was his “favorite” cryptocurrency and calling himself Dogefather, a play on words with Dogecoin and the word godfather.
The Dogefather
SNL May 8— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 28, 2021
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However, Dogecoin is not the only one Musk is interested in, as only a few months ago he announced that his company had accumulated $ 1.5 billion worth of bitcoins, and that Tesla would accept e-currency as a perfectly legitimate tool for buying cars.
This news in itself also helped the Dogecoin explosion and coincided with the listing of the currency on more and more exchanges, thus making it even more accessible to any investor, speculator or just a fan.
Doge mania has continued in recent weeks with Musk’s expected appearance on the popular Saturday Night Live comedy show, which everyone hoped would be linked to cryptocurrencies.
And so it turned out, and Musk took on the role of a strange financial expert explaining the crypto market. Investors hoped that his appearance there would shoot Dogesoin to $ 1, but instead Dogefather disappointed.
In the end, the jokes weren’t much fun, and the whole presentation of the entrepreneur seemed awkward. Instead of stimulating a new jump in the entire market, its participation had the exact opposite effect – Dogecoin collapsed in just 25% of a record 74 cents in just hours.
The decline of Dogsoin negatively affected the entire market, with Bitcoin closing the weekend by about 2%. Almost all the other cryptocurrencies also fell into the “red” zone.
And in the real world, it all meant billions of dollars in real money that a lot of people lost, not for fun.
In an attempt to repair the damage just two days later, Musk again announced on Twitter his large-scale intention to launch a satellite to the moon, funded by Dogecoin, and the whole mission will be called DOGE-1. The news was officially confirmed by SpaceX.
“This mission will demonstrate the potential for using cryptocurrencies beyond Earth and will lay the groundwork for interplanetary trading,” said Tom Ochinero, SpaceX’s vice president of trade.
But is it possible for the beloved Doge to really become the first internet mime in space and, more importantly, to prove that cryptocurrencies can be a real alternative to traditional money?
In fact, Musk himself, despite his enthusiasm, said that cryptocurrencies are promising, but still need to invest wisely, and at the moment they are mostly a tool for speculation.
Cryptocurrency is promising, but please invest with caution! https://t.co/A4kplcP8Vq
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 7, 2021
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This is especially true for the Dogecoin currency, which, as an absolute joke, currently reaches tens of billions of dollars in total market capitalization in very real and real money.
Moreover, in a labile market, where the words and actions of a single person can lead to losses of millions, in a matter of minutes.
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