Dogecoin, the memecoin made popular by X's billionaire owner Elon Musk, is all over the headlines once again. And quite frankly, this was a not altogether unexpected outcome.
Following Donald Trump's return to the White House, the cryptocurrency market was on the upswing, as the president-elect has pledged to be more friendly towards digital assets.
A Dogecoin surge was all but expected with crypto bulls, Mr Musk's influence on social media and the spectre of the Tesla Motors boss leading a new US government unit incidentally bearing the same name as the memecoin, the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).
What is Dogecoin?
There are more than 10,000 cryptocurrencies globally, but what made Dogecoin popular is the hilarity it brings to the table. Software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer created it in 2013 as a joke to poke fun at the scepticism towards the industry at the time.
Its website – mostly in a Comic Sans-inspired typeface – describes it as “the accidental crypto movement that makes people smile”, complete with a manifesto that contains some serious visions “for the people”. Mr Musk's endorsement of the memecoin has significantly contributed to its popularity.
Dogecoin's logo resembles a Japanese Shiba Inu dog. The actual Shiba Inu portrayed, named Kabosu, died in May. An unrelated Shiba Inu coin was created in 2020, meant to rival Dogecoin.
How much has Dogecoin risen?
Dogecoin's price has largely been in the $0.10 to $0.15 range in the past couple of years, though it did record substantial gains in 2021 as a result of Mr Musk's actions, including tweets and announcing that Tesla will accept cryptocurrencies as payment for its merchandise.
It was also in May that year that Dogecoin reached its all-time high at about $0.74, before dropping nearly 30 per cent after Mr Musk's appearance on Saturday Night Live.
It remained in that humble level this year – even in the lead-up to the November 5 polls – though in April it rose to about $0.20. At the close of trading on election day, it climbed to $0.19, before hitting $0.21 on November 6, data from CoinMarketCap shows.
Once Mr Trump's victory was evident, Dogecoin more than doubled from its November 5 close to $0.43 on Tuesday, its highest since April 2024. It ultimately settled at $0.38 at the close of trading.
This has resulted in Dogecoin's market capitalisation to hit more than $56 billion on Tuesday, which is also more than double the value it had on November 5.
Dogecoin has, for a while, been the eighth-biggest cryptocurrency by market cap. But with its recent ascent, it is now the sixth, surpassing USDC and XRP.
Did this make people rich?
Of course it did – and actually made more people millionaires.
According to data gathered from Finbold Research and BitInfoCharts, the number of crypto wallets that held $1 million or more in Dogecoin between September 27 and November 7 rose by more than 40 per cent.
That's 408 more Dogecoin millionaires, bringing their total to 1,417. Out of those, 273 wallets contain more than $10 million in Dogecoin, while 1,114 hold between $1 million and $9.99 million.
A new 'meme' US government unit?
Dogecoin's fame – or notoriety – would seem to gain further steam with Mr Trump's announcement that he would create a government unit, the Department of Government Efficiency.
The entity, tasked to “dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies”, is to be headed by businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, who once challenged for the Republican endorsement but dropped out and endorsed Mr Trump, and, who else, Mr Musk.
“This tongue-in-cheek post struck a chord with Dogecoin enthusiasts, who now see Mr Musk’s possible government role as a chance to propel the meme coin further into the spotlight,” said Jordan Major, chief editor at Finbold.
