Dogecoin, the meme-inspired cryptocurrency that has gained popularity among celebrities and investors alike, has seen a significant increase in its price over the past week. The coin, which started as a joke in 2013, has risen by more than 24% in the last seven days, reaching a high of $0.1031 on Thursday, according to CoinGecko. The rally comes amid speculation that Dogecoin could be involved in the upcoming payment feature of X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
X, which changed its name from Twitter in December 2023, has been working on introducing a peer-to-peer payment feature on its platform. The company, led by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, has already secured licenses across multiple US states to facilitate monetary transfers, similar to services offered by PayPal and other payment giants. The payment feature, which is expected to launch by mid-2024, is part of Musk’s vision to turn X into an “everything app” that can offer various functions and utilities to its users.
The company has recently created a dedicated account on its platform, called X Payments, to showcase its payment feature. The account, which has a gold verification badge and the distinctive X logo, has already attracted over 73,000 followers, despite having no posts yet. The account also has a blank space next to payments, leading some to wonder what kind of currency or method will be used for the transactions.
Dogecoin Fans Speculate on Potential Integration
One of the possible candidates for the payment feature is Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency that has been endorsed by Musk on several occasions. The Tesla CEO, who is also a fan of memes and jokes, has frequently tweeted about Dogecoin, calling it his favorite coin and even naming himself the “Dogefather”. Musk’s support for Dogecoin has boosted its popularity and price, making it one of the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with a value of over $13 billion.
Many Dogecoin fans and investors are hoping that Musk will integrate the coin into X’s payment feature, allowing users to send and receive DOGE on the platform. Some have even suggested that Musk could use Dogecoin as a tipping mechanism for content creators and influencers, similar to how Brave browser uses Basic Attention Token (BAT) for rewarding online publishers. Such a move could increase the adoption and demand for Dogecoin, as well as enhance its utility and legitimacy as a form of digital currency.
However, neither X nor Musk have confirmed or denied the possibility of using Dogecoin for the payment feature. It is also unclear whether the feature will support traditional fiat currency or cryptocurrency payments, or both. Some analysts have cautioned that the speculation is based on mere rumors and hopes, and that there is no concrete evidence to support the integration of Dogecoin into X’s payment system.
Dogecoin Price Performance and Future Outlook
Despite the uncertainty, the speculation has had a positive impact on Dogecoin’s price performance. The coin has surged by 10% in the last 24 hours, outperforming most of its peers in the crypto market. The coin is currently trading around $0.085, with a 24-hour trading volume of over $2 billion. The coin has also seen a spike in social media activity, with over 300,000 tweets mentioning Dogecoin in the past week, according to LunarCRUSH.
Dogecoin’s future outlook depends largely on the developments and announcements from X and Musk regarding the payment feature. If the feature does include Dogecoin, the coin could see a further increase in its price and popularity, as well as gain more exposure and acceptance among the mainstream audience. However, if the feature does not involve Dogecoin, the coin could face a correction and lose some of its momentum, as well as face competition from other cryptocurrencies that may be integrated into X’s payment system.
Dogecoin’s price may also be influenced by other factors, such as the technical improvements and upgrades that the coin is undergoing. Dogecoin’s development team, which includes Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, has been working on transitioning the coin from its current proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism to a more efficient and eco-friendly proof-of-stake (PoS) model. The team has also been collaborating with other projects, such as Polygon and Ren, to enable cross-chain interoperability and scalability for Dogecoin.
Dogecoin, which was created as a parody of Bitcoin, has come a long way since its inception. The coin, which features a Shiba Inu dog as its logo and mascot, has become a cultural phenomenon and a symbol of the power and potential of the crypto community. Whether Dogecoin will be integrated into X’s payment feature remains to be seen, but the coin has already proven itself to be more than just a joke.
