Dogecoin: What is it and How Much is it Worth?

What is Dogecoin?

Dogecoin started as a joke by two software developers, Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus, who, in 2013, wanted to make a fun alternative to Bitcoin. The coin was inspired by a popular meme featuring a Shiba Inu dog, his baffled expression and internal monologue in broken English.

The coin is powered by Litecoin and is considered an inflationary coin, because unlike Bitcoin there is no finite number of coins that can be mined. Also, Dogecoin’s one-minute block intervals make it faster than many other blockchains. Originally, the use of the funny meme was designed to satirise the rise of altcoins but, in time, the joke actually led to some practicality.

What can you do with Dogecoin?

Dogecoin is actually very similar to Bitcoin, as it can be used to send value internationally to anyone. In recent years, the coin’s network has increased and more vendors are accepting the unique token.

In the US, for example, the coin can be used for online and in-store purchases via Bitpay, a cryptocurrency wallet. However, Dogecoin is not as popular in New Zealand and its uses are mostly limited to sending it and trading.

→ Related article: How to Buy Bitcoin in New Zealand

Elon Musk and Dogecoin

Dogecoin’s link to the popular meme has seen it gain a large following. Recently, the influence of Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has sent investors flocking to the cryptocurrency.

The latest price surge has been linked to the billionaire entrepreneur, who dropped a cryptic tweet on April 28 promoting an upcoming appearance on Saturday Night Live (SNL) on May 8, while referring to himself as the “Dogefather”. Ahead of his appearance, Musk also tweeted, “Cryptocurrency is promising, but please invest with caution!”

Some analysts suggest that investors jumped on the coin before the tech-king’s appearance on SNL, because they expected it to cause the coin’s price to spike even higher.

However, during his appearance on the show, Elon Musk referred to the coin as a “hustle” and the coin’s value fell by 35%.

The day after his appearance on SNL, Musk announced his plans for SpaceX to accept Dogecoin as payment, and shared this tweet:

What is Dogecoin currently worth?

At the time of writing, Dogecoin was worth 62c. Year-to-date, the coin has risen by 15,584.6%. While that is a crazy amount, it is worth bearing in mind that the coin is extremely volatile and past performance is not an indication of future performance.

How can you buy Dogecoin in New Zealand?

If you are interested in investing in Dogecoin, there are a number of cryptocurrency exchanges that buy, sell and trade it. It’s available on some of these crypto exchanges that take NZ$: