Dogecoin is one of those cryptocurrencies that is so close to mainstream legitimacy that it is possible to briefly forget that it is entirely based on a meme of a dog. The coin is inspired by the “doge” meme, which rose to the dizzying heights of mainstream meme popularity that was only possible between 2010 and 2015, when everyone still used Facebook actively.
The doge meme was, for the uninitiated, a picture of a Shiba Inu looking to the side, with awkwardly written phrases superimposed over it. Seems surprising that this could start a multibillion-dollar cryptocurrency, right? However, despite Dogecoin’s strange beginnings, it has gone on to become an actual player in the world of crypto and is now a frequent investment for buyers.
To joke or not to joke?
Dogecoin was started as a joke, and until late 2020, nearly everyone had abandoned Doge as nothing more than a joke currency. At one point, it did not even have its own miners, which left it vulnerable to attacks from outside parties.
Dogecoin was introduced in early December of 2013 and it reached a market capitalization of $85bn in early May 2021. After a long period of the coin being nothing more than a joke, it briefly rose in popularity in 2017 and 2018, during one of the first cryptocurrency bubbles. Then in July of 2020, Doge again experienced a rise in popularity due to a TikTok challenge that tried to get Dogecoin to $1.
Since then, it has been boosted by Elon Musk on a number of occasions and was part of the GameStop short squeeze. It continues to grow in popularity and although it is volatile, it is arguably no more volatile than many of the other niche cryptocurrencies on the market today.
Trading Dogecoin
Crypto is an inherently volatile investment to trade in – this is part of its appeal and why millions of people have begun to try their luck at trading. There is nothing else quite like the mix of innovation, lax regulation, extreme volatility and high values that investors can find in the world of crypto trading.
Traders who are interested in making solid investments in crypto – regardless of the coins they are trading in – can access a range of different tools that will help them to make decisions. For example, the OKX platform provides crypto wallet and exchange services for all of the biggest coins, including Dogecoin. Users can check the Doge price while also trading their Doge investments or holding, as the case may be.
Just like with any other cryptocurrency – or any investment instrument at all for that matter – it pays to be cautious and not leap headfirst into new investments. Crypto investing forums and Reddit threads are full of individuals claiming to have invested the entirety of their life savings or 401K into a niche coin or new platform – this is not a good idea.
Regardless of what you are investing in, only invest what you can afford to lose, and try to diversify your investments so that if one crypto tanks, like Terra Luna, for example, you will not have put all of your eggs into that one basket.
Elon Musk enters the chat
Musk has manipulated the worth of Doge multiple times through his tweets and he has complained about how Doge is primarily owned and controlled by a small group of people. However, in an effort to change this, Musk has tried to buy and sell and direct Doge-holders to buy and sell in certain ways that have only further centralized ownership of the coin. Like many things Musk involves himself with, he does not fully comprehend the market, the technology or his lumbering interferences with it. For the sake of Doge itself, he will hopefully refrain from future comment.
Collective belief
Ultimately, it is up to you whether or not you are willing to take Dogecoin seriously, but the fact of the matter is that Doge has become a popular crypto through collective belief in its worth. Beliefs, feelings and perceptions drive a lot of the crypto market because it is so volatile and unregulated, and because it remains a somewhat niche market that can still be swayed by a handful of articles and popular social media accounts.
Only time will tell if Doge is here to stay for the long term or not but in the meantime, collective perception holds that Doge is real and a worthy investment, and it does not appear to be going anywhere soon.
