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What is Dogecoin?

By:
Bob Mason

Dogecoin is a decentralized, P2P digital currency that enables you to easily send money online.

Dogecoin and dollars.

Dogecoin definition

Dogecoin describes Dogecoin as “the internet currency”.

The Shibu Inu is a Japanese breed of dog that was popularized as an online meme. “Doge” is a Shibu Inu and Dogecoin’s friendly mascot.

Dogecoin’s Community members are referred to as Shibes.

As a true cryptocurrency, Dogecoin provides users with a completely anonymous, decentralized, and secure environment.

Dogecoin holders can use Dogecoin to buy goods and services or trade them for other currencies.

Holders are also known to use Dogecoin to “tip” fellow internet-goers who create or share great content.

Who invented dogecoin?

Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus created Dogecoin.

Dogecoin was born as a concept in 2013 and launched in December 2013 by engineers Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus.

Before the creation of Dogecoin, the two engineers had reportedly never actually met in person.

How can I buy dogecoin?

There are multiple ways to obtain Dogecoin, including getting tipped on the Dogecoin community and mining them.

You can also buy and trade Dogecoin, however, on crypto exchanges that support Dogecoin.

There are numerous crypto exchanges that support the buying and selling of Dogecoin.

Based on 24-hour volumes, WenX Pro, Binance, and CoinDCX have the largest 24-hour Dogecoin/USDT trade volumes at the time of writing.

Other popular exchanges supporting the buying and selling of Dogecoin include:

When choosing a suitable exchange to buy Dogecoin, the trading volume must be among one of the key deciding factors.

Other factors

When selecting an appropriate exchange, there are also a number of other factors to consider. These include:

  • Jurisdiction: Ensure that you find an exchange that supports your jurisdiction and language.
  • Exchange security: When considering the cases of exchange hacks in the not too distant past, 2FA should be a minimum requirement if you plan to hold your Dogecoin on an exchange.
  • Exchange Capabilities: For those look for more than just buying and holding, access to trading indicators and risk management controls including stop loss would be a consideration.
  • Trade pairings: For those looking to purchase with fiat money, the option to deposit fiat or purchase with fiat money is important. Not all exchanges support crypto purchases with fiat money.
  • Exchange Fees: Fees do vary significantly across the exchanges. This becomes a greater consideration for those looking to buy and sell Dogecoin on a more frequent basis.
  • Platform customer support: It is always important to have access to customer support to assist with any issues.

When considering the above, WenX Pro has the largest 24-hour DOGE/USDT trading volume at $360.16m

A distant 2nd and 3rd, by volume, are Binance ($149.81m) and CoinDCX ($149.70m), according to Coinranking.com.

For many, Binance may be the preferred exchange simply for market position and the sheer size of its global network.

When trading cryptos, significant daily volatility means that liquidity must be a deciding factor to limit slippage.

Dogecoin Wallets

Before signing up to an exchange in order to purchase your Dogecoin, you will need a Dogecoin wallet.

To get started, simply:

  • Get a Dogecoin compatible wallet.
  • Buy some Dogecoin.
  • Use your Dogecoin.
  • Stay up-to-date.

From the Dogecoin homepage, you can download a Dogecoin wallet for desktop or smartphone.

For your desktop, you can select a wallet for Windows, OS X, or Linux.

We do recommend that you store all of your purchased Dogecoin within your personal Dogecoin wallet.

Once you have your Dogecoin wallet, sign up to a Dogecoin-supported exchange and purchase your Dogecoin.

<h2 “what”>What can I buy with dogecoin?

The main uses of Dogecoin are currently:

  • Purchasing goods and services.
  • Tipping across the Dogecoin community.
  • Donating to charities.

For those looking to purchase goods with Dogecoin, there are numerous merchants that accept Dogecoin.

Dogecoin holders can purchase a wide array of goods ranging from cars to precious metals.

One of the more prominent companies accepting Dogecoin is the U.S NBA franchise the Dallas Mavericks.

In early 2021, the Dallas Mavericks owner claimed to have done more than 20,000 #Dogecoin transactions. Mark Cuban’s NBA franchise had become the largest Dogecoin merchant in the world.

What is going on with it now?

Its rise to fame has led to a far wider acceptance of Dogecoin.

Across the U.S, CoinFlip announced in early 2021 that people could purchase Dogecoin at 1,800 ATMs across 46 states.

Through the early part of 2021, Dogecoin had hit the crypto news headlines as more famous members of the crypto community began to plug Dogecoin.

Unlike other cryptos, such as Bitcoin and Litecoin, there is an infinite number of Dogecoins. As a result, Dogecoin will not face the same supply and demand outlook as the likes of Bitcoin and Litecoin.

While the endless supply means that the upside for Dogecoin may not be as meteoric as Bitcoin’s, there are also benefits.

The endless supply does mean that Dogecoin is ideal for smaller transactions.

At the time of writing, DOGE stood at $0.0575. While well below the January 2021 all-time high of $0.1004, DOGE has managed to retain much of its 2021 gains.

The crypto newswires contributed to late January’s spike and the upside for the current year.

Year-to-date, Dogecoin was up by over 1,000%, with the Dogecoin Shibes looking for a return to $1 levels.

As the community grows and Dogecoin becomes more widely accepted, more plugs by the crypto elite would support a return to $1 levels.

What are the risks of investing in dogecoin?

As is the case with any crypto, the volatility alone means that investors must trade Dogecoin with care.

As previously mentioned, the other issue that Dogecoin holders face is the endless supply.

This means that any intrinsic value could be diluted as the crypto market gets flooded with more Dogecoin.

As Bitcoin and Litecoin gain market interest, their finite supply remains an allure that Dogecoin is unable to compete with. This leaves holders facing downward pressure as the broader market makes ground.

On the tech side, there have been no material changes to the Dogecoin blockchain in recent years. This means that Dogecoin could also become dated and fall behind its peers.

There have been reports of Dogecoin Shibes leaving the Dogecoin community in favor of more current platforms.

As things stand, the Dogecoin community has been key to delivering price support. The community has, in the past, raised funds to return monies to those who have been hacked.

Once the community begins to weaken, Dogecoin may lose ground without any blockchain enhancements.

In the early years, Dogecoin’s almost instant popularity was attributed to the founders’ lightheartedness.

While a number of crypto communities were battling it out, Dogecoin was meant to be a joke.

More significantly, however, was undoubtedly the generosity of the Dogecoin Community.

Not only did the community raise funds for multiple charities and good causes but also raise funds to cover losses faced by hacked Dogecoin holders.

To this day, the Dogecoin Community remains integral to the ongoing success of Dogecoin and its continued popularity.

Celebs and Dogecoin

A number of crypto celebs have surfaced and 4, in particular, have plugged Dogecoin, contributing to its early-2021 surge to $1.

Elon Musk, Gene Simmons, Mark Cuban, and Snoop Dogg are perhaps the most famous of them all.

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk single-handedly drove Bitcoin to its current all-time high $61,699 and Dogecoin to its all-time high.

After Tesla Motors’s purchase of Bitcoin and its acceptance of Bitcoin as payment, the Dogecoin plug had hit in the midst of the crypto market frenzy

As more prominent crypto advocates plug the likes of Dogecoin, the markets will be looking for fresh highs.

About the Author

Bob Masonauthor

With over 20 years of experience in the finance industry, Bob has been managing regional teams across Europe and Asia and focusing on analytics across both corporate and financial institutions. Currently he is covering developments relating to the financial markets, including currencies, commodities, alternative asset classes, and global equities.

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