Dogecoin (DOGE) is once again on a tear – up nearly 10% in its US dollar and Bitcoin pairs at time of writing – after Tesla chief executive Elon Musk pimps the canine crypto.
In a viral tweet, Musk posted a meme suggesting that the cryptocurrency, which was introduced as a joke cryptocurrency in 2013, could take over and become the global reserve currency.
Following the tweet, Dogecoin climbed as high as $0.003835 on Saturday – nearly a 20% surge according to CoinMarketCap.
When asked by one of his followers where his Bitcoin is from the Twitter giveaway scam, the Tesla CEO replies,
“Excuse me, I only sell Doge.”
Musk’s social media stunt comes days after one of the most notorious Twitter hacks in history. On Wednesday, the crypto scammers briefly took over the accounts of popular personalities including former president Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. The compromised accounts posted malicious tweets that encouraged followers to send $1,000 in BTC, with the promise of doubling their contribution. The crypto looters ran off with more than 12 BTC worth over $110,000.
Dogecoin’s sudden spike is an example of the volatile nature of cryptocurrencies. Prices may rise and fall with little to no warning.