Elon Musk recently hosted a town hall in Folsom, Pennsylvania, where he made a mention of Dogecoin, leading to a 15% surge in the price of the memecoin within 24 hours.
During the event, while discussing Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy, an audience member inquired about Musk’s idea of establishing a “Department of Government Efficiency.”
In response, Musk humorously suggested the acronym “D.O.G.E.,” which resulted in the crowd cheering and applauding, and subsequently causing the price of Dogecoin to rise as the remark spread across social media.
This incident occurred as Musk is actively supporting Trump by contributing $75 million to aid Trump and other Republicans in their election efforts through his America PAC. Trump, in turn, has promised to appoint Musk as the head of a new department focused on overseeing and managing government spending.
Many cryptocurrency enthusiasts are optimistic that Trump’s regulatory approach towards crypto will be favorable, potentially leading to an increase in the prices of Bitcoin and other digital assets.
Musk has been a vocal supporter of Dogecoin for a long time, which previously led to a class action lawsuit accusing him of engaging in a pump-and-dump scheme to artificially inflate the coin. However, the lawsuit was dismissed in August.
In May 2021, Dogecoin reached an all-time high market cap of $88 billion following multiple endorsements from Musk, including a mention during an SNL sketch where he dubbed himself the “dogefather.” The coin also experienced a 30% surge in 2023 after Musk briefly changed his Twitter profile picture to a Shiba Inu, the dog breed associated with the Doge meme.
Currently, Dogecoin holds the position of the world’s eighth-largest cryptocurrency, with its market capitalization increasing to $20 billion after Musk’s recent announcement. In the past day, Dogecoin has outperformed Bitcoin, which saw a 3% rise, as well as the broader cryptocurrency market.
After dropping to lows of $0.05 in late 2023, Dogecoin rebounded to $0.22 in March, coinciding with Bitcoin reaching an all-time high of $73,000 following the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
In June, the memecoin experienced a 10% decline due to concerns about rising interest rates prompting investors to sell off their Dogecoin holdings in favor of safer assets. Since then, Dogecoin has stabilized around $0.10.
For more insights on all things crypto, check out Fortune’s Crypto Crash Course, featuring short and easy-to-read lesson cards.