Dogecoin, the cryptocurrency that Elon Musk wouldn't stop tweeting about, has surged to an all-time high - and the wave doesn't seem like it's dipping down anytime soon.
It soon became the focus of Reddit users in early February when they turned their attention to cryptocurrency after driving a stratospheric rise in the shares of American video games retailer GameStop.
The virtual coin has since risen 320 percent in the past month to 17p per until - taking its gain for 2021 to 4,900 percent.
This is the highest-ever for the cryptocurrency, and the result of a semi-ironic movement that's involved thousands of buyers, tens of thousands of online posters and billionaire Musk.
Advert
Musk has been one of the more prominent promoters of Dogecoin for some time.
On Thursday, he tweeted an image with a caption that read: "Doge barking at the moon."
It hinted at the massive growth of Dogecoin in the cryptocurrency market.
Barking mad or a clever way to increase Dogecoins' profile? Either way, the popularity of the cryptocurrency is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Advert
But what exactly is Dogecoin and how can investors get hold of some?
What is it?
Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, but far less influential.
Founded in 2013 by former Adobe and IBM software engineers, it has a market value of £12.3bn compared with Bitcoin's £850bn.
Advert
According to Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange, it was created as a joke and is a reference to a popular internet meme.
However, unlike Bitcoin, there is no hard limit on the number of coins that will exist.
Its low price per coin contrasts with Bitcoin's more established reputation and high cost of over £45,000 per coin.
Why is it surging?
Dogecoin is now a hot asset among cryptocurrency fans and punters looking to make money fast.
Advert
Incredibly, tweets from Tesla chief executive Musk have seen it soar in popularity in the last six months.
Dogecoin is also popular because it references a long-running internet joke, and its rise in prominence is seen as entertainment by some of its internet fans, who refer to themselves as the "dogearmy".
Its rise in value is not down to a belief the coins will become a widely adopted cryptocurrency, but due to its popularity in internet forums and opportunity, it presents for investors to make a quick profit.
How can I buy it?
Binance and Kraken are the largest exchanges that offer Dogecoin trading.
Advert
There are fewer cryptocurrency brokes that offer Dogecoin with more popular coins, such as Bitcoin or Ethereum.
However, in the US, leading free stockbroker Robinhood does support Dogecoin, which has played a vital role in driving up its price.
The broker has struggled with surging demand and last week temporarily disabled instant deposits for cryptocurrency purchases.
Featured Image Credit:
