Dogecoin Surges 77% as Retail Fever Pitch Stretches Into Crypto

(Bloomberg) -- The frenzy of Reddit-fueled stocks is reaching some of the weirder parts of the cryptocurrency world.

Dogecoin, a digital coin started as a joke, soared as much as 77% since 11:04 a.m. Hong Kong time, according to data from cryptocurrency tracker CoinGecko. Over the past 24 hours, it’s up 42% to $0.01129497.

Users on the Reddit thread SatoshiStreetBets touted the gains with posts like, “Up 25% this last hour. First dog on the moon” and “NEED $1 Doge.” Another one said “Doge = the crypto gme,” referring to GameStop Corp., the stock that’s surged some 400% this week as retail traders squeezed short sellers.

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Extreme volatility is entirely normal in the crypto space, where hundreds of coins compete for attention with gimmicky names, far-fetched blockchain ideas and campaigns on social media. Last year, a TikTok trend encouraged users to invest in Dogecoin with the idea that there’s serious money to be made if the price hit $1, prompting a price surge of more than 40% in 24 hours.

Dogecoin’s market capitalization sits about $1.4 billion, the 33rd-highest among cryptocurrencies, according to CoinGecko data.

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