Dogecoin Surges After Musk Says Tesla to Accept Cryptocurrency

Dogecoin’s price increased more than 15% on Friday after Elon Musk announced Tesla would accept the cryptocurrency as payment for merchandise.

Musk’s five-word tweet — “Tesla merch can be purchased with Dogecoin” — has racked up more than 270,000 likes on the platform and sparked a spirited debate in the comments section.

Following Musk’s announcement that Tesla would test out Dogecoin as a payment option in a month, Dogecoin prices rose 14%.

With more than 70 million followers on Twitter, the billionaire is known for publicly expressing his opinions, often in ways that land him in court or in hot water with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The vocal proponent of cryptocurrencies, Musk, has heavily influenced the prices of dogecoin and bitcoin. At one point, Musk said the company would accept bitcoin for the purchase of its cars before dropping the idea.

Rush to buy Dogecoin

Tesla’s merchandise, which includes the recently launched “Cyberwhistle” and “Cyberquad for Kids”, is a big hit with the company’s fans and usually sells out within a few hours of being listed.

The news that goods for Doge are selling out even faster than dollars is a positive indication of crypto’s continued penetration of corporate culture,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, senior financial analyst at FxPro.

As a result of Musk’s tweets on Dogecoin, including the one where he called it the “people’s crypto”, the once-obscure digital currency has become a speculator’s dream. The token’s price surged by about 4,000% in 2021.

Tesla disclosed last year it had bought $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin, and Musk has also indicated he owns some bitcoins and Dogecoins.

Tesla faces intense competition from legacy automakers, including Ford, as well as startups, including Rivian Automotive.

Cybertruck production will begin in the first quarter of 2023, a year later than expected, Tesla announced, Reuters reported.