“If big Dogecoin holders sell most of their coins, it will have my full support.”
That was Tesla CEO Elon Musk all in one Tweet On Sunday. “Too much focus is the only real problem imo,” he added. This followed a few hours later Tweet: “I’ll literally be paying actual $ if they just void their accounts.”
The cryptocurrency, which started as a light-hearted joke in 2013, fell 9% to 0.057 cents on Monday. According to data from CoinDesk, Dogecoin is down around 34% from the February 7 record high of 0.087. It was more than 20% off that high on Sunday, a decline that is in line with a commonly used Wall Street definition of a bear market.
Read: Why is Dogecoin falling? The crypto has fallen 20% since its record on Monday
But Dogecoin is still up around 900% since the start of the year, benefiting from a general surge in cryptocurrencies and after a rush over Reddit stocks last month that made its way into the sector. Even Billy Markus, co-founder and creator of the volatile cryptocurrency, has said that its stratospheric ascent is “Not something I can understand.”
Tesla meanwhile recently unveiled that it has invested $ 1.5 billion in the number 1 cryptocurrency, Bitcoin
BTCUSD, -1.92%,
and could start accepting it as payment for its products in the future. Bitcoin passed a record of $ 50,000 over the weekend when some traditional Wall Street companies waded into cryptocurrencies.
While Musk is apparently trying to cool the passion for Dogecoin, it has been rated by some as helpful light a fire under the cryptocurrency after a series of seemingly bullish tweets, like this one from late December: “One word: Doge.”
At the beginning of February he has inspired another fierce rally with a spate of tweets referring to Dogecoin as “The People’s Crypto” and shared a picture of a rocket to the moon with one word: Doge. Celebrities like Gene Simmons of the rock band Kiss have also spoken out for Doge.
Read: Should I buy Dogecoin? Why the prices for the cryptocurrency are rising – but risky
And: Dogecoin? Many “retailers will lose money,” says crypto expert
