Should You Dodge Dogecoin? We Asked The Experts…

Dogecoin made headlines this week after its value surged more than 14,000% since the start of the year, bringing the cryptocurrency’s market capitalisation – the combined value of every coin – up to around $84bn: equivalent to the annual economic output of Sri Lanka according to The Guardian.

But what is it? Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency that was created as a joke, adorned with the face of the Shiba Inu dog from the “Doge” meme. Famously backed by Tesla founder Elon Musk, the coin shares many features with Litecoin. However, unlike Litecoin, there is no hard cap on the number of Dogecoins that can be produced.

With Elon Musk hosting Saturday Night Live this weekend, many analysts have speculated the coin’s value is due to continue surging upwards. So is now a good time to buy Dogecoin? Or is it better to dodge? We asked the experts…

Our Panel of experts:

• Gabriele Musella CEO & Co-Founder at Coinrule
• Nigel Green, CEO and Founder at deVere Group
• Jason Cozens, CEO at Glint
• Antony Portno, founder of Traders of Crypto
• Ruud Feltkamp, CEO at crypto trading bot Cryptohopper
• Nick Saponaro, Co-Founder and CIO, Divi
• Benoit Marzouk, CEO at BitcoinPoint

Gabriele Musella CEO & Co-Founder at Coinrule

“What makes a coin good or bad?

“There is no rule of thumb to follow. The best we can do is to compare the Dogecoin with already established blockchain projects like Ethereum, Polkadot, etc.

“Let’s take a look at Dogecoin’s supply: we can see that, unlike Bitcoin, it is an inflationary token with an endless supply that just keeps on growing and growing. This means that an uncountable amount of Dogecoin is being created every minute making it unstable in the long term. Well, we could say that Ethereum is also an inflationary coin, although the main difference is that ETH has an annual maximum supply which makes it more stable than Dogecoin.

“If we also look at the basic things a currency should be used for like being a store of value and helping transactions, dogecoin does all of these just like Bitcoin and Ethereum but asides this, there’s nothing unique about it – it is a meme party. There’s no logical explanation behind the jump in its price asides the fact that it is being hyped by an active cyber community.

“As we all know, Bitcoin started the crypto revolution by offering value from its relative scarcity, ETH powers smart contracts and the whole DeFi world removing the need for centralized financial institutions.

“What does Dogecoin help with?

“Considering that it was started as a joke, where does its valuation come from? Simple answer, Noise. But how long can it last and survive based on hype and noise from the community if it isn’t self-sustaining? At best, it returns short-term returns for traders and starts to fizzle out when the noise dies down.”

Nigel Green, CEO and Founder at deVere Group

“Dogecoin jumped to an all-time high of 69 cents on Wednesday morning, meaning the meme-based cryptocurrency has skyrocketed 12,000% since the start of the year.”It comes ahead of Tesla CEO Elon Musk hosting NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” this weekend. The high-profile billionaire entrepreneur has long been a fan of the digital token to his 52 million Twitter followers, and analysts say that a mention of Dogecoin on national television could further fuel demand.

“It has become one of the main beneficiaries of the wider explosion in the cryptocurrency market.

“Whilst the broader boom over recent months has been fuelled by soaring interest from major institutional investors and growing recognition that borderless digital currencies are the future of money, in the case of Dogecoin – which was started as a joke – its popularity and therefore price seems as if it is almost entirely driven by celeb backers and social media.

“Although all classed as cryptocurrencies, it is difficult to compare Dogecoin with the likes of Bitcoin, which runs on ground-breaking tech and has a limited supply giving it scarcity value, amongst other valuable attributes; and Ethereum, which is solving real-world issues and providing in-demand business solutions.  For these reasons, amongst others, they are attracting that monumental institutional investment.

“On the flipside, we can assume that many people have been buying Dogecoin, not because they think it has any real value, but because they hope others will get FOMO (the Fear of Missing Out) due to social media campaigns, inflate the price up, and then they can sell off and make a quick profit.

“I would suggest that should you wish to have the excitement of being part of a so-called movement and want to chase massive gains, it would be wise to ensure that you have a diversified portfolio and a solid long-term financial strategy established in place first.”

 Jason Cozens, CEO at Glint

“Consumers should approach Dogecoin’s growth with extreme caution – cryptos are already highly volatile assets without their performance being so strongly tied to the popularity of a single high-profile influencer such as Elon Musk.”Whilst a monthly increase of around 900% is obviously tempting for investors, these are not the failsafe get-rich-quick schemes that they are sometimes portrayed as – investors need to complete due diligence rather than jumping on the crypto bandwagon. One of the major contributors to the volatility of cryptos is concentrated ownership – e.g. 95% of all Bitcoin is owned by just 2% of “whales” – putting it at risk of sudden fluctuations.

“What is driving the rise of cryptos and other alternative currencies? I believe it is down to a search for value and a desire amongst consumers to take control of how they spend and save their money. They’ve had enough of being punished for saving, with rising inflation, historically low interest rates, record-high borrowing and continued quantitative easing all combining to erode the value of our cash, savings and purchasing power.

“However, it appears as though the crypto crackdown has begun – announcements from NatWest and HSBC are designed to stifle crypto growth whilst the Bank of England’s CBDC taskforce suggests regulators plan to curtail and ultimately crush their mainstream use by establishing a digital currency tied to sterling – which will be subject to the same factors that erode our wealth and will lose its value in the same way as cash.

“Gold is another alternative currency that is growing in popularity plus, as it is held by central banks, it may be less likely to face a government crackdown. Whilst the value of gold can decline, it has proven its long-term reliability and many believe will continue to flourish once cryptos have been brought under regulatory control.

Antony Portno, Founder at Traders of Crypto

“On face value, it is a complete mystery as to why dogecoin continues to grow, it is a meme coin, with bad tockenomics and no development. We all know the world of crypto is in equal measure, crazy and fickle.

“Social media has been the key contributor to the growth of dogecoin, which has been further fuelled by endorsements from the likes of Elon Musk and Mark Cuban. It has gathered a cult following. Another reason why it is generating so much attention is that the coin value is going up, people only focus on coins that are going up. It has become an anti-establishment rebel coin. Yes, it doesn’t make sense as an investment on core “fundamentals” but who are you to tell me what I can invest in? Doge is 2 fingers to being told what to do, the rebellious coin.

“There has been much talk about getting Doge to $1, and whilst it has seemed like an impossible dream for a while, things are starting to pull in the right direction. Right now, it only needs another 50% gain to get there. The way the market works, the price is only about the last trade and if the sellers hold back and the momentum is up, what’s to stop it.

“So will it all end in tears? Quite possibly, but it was overhauled at 5 cents and if the momentum moves the other way things could get nasty. As long as you are investing sensibly then it should be a fun ride.”

Ruud Feltkamp, CEO at crypto trading bot Cryptohopper

“Is Dogecoin a good investment?

“To answer that question, we may first need to determine what a good investment is.

“As a trader, I look at an asset in two ways. Do I believe in the basics? And, can I trade well on it technically?

“If you compare Dogecoin’s market cap to Bitcoin, BNB or Ethereum, you would say there is room for growth. Dogecoin has a market cap of over $ 72 billion, Ethereum $ 386 billion. Just don’t forget that BNB and Ethereum both have great use case and add value. After all, other tokens can be built on top of those blockchains.

“Dogecoin is very similar to Bitcoin, especially the name and the deflationary aspect generate the value. Of course, it helps enormously that people like Elon Musk are pumping Dogecoin. Besides being “the official meme coin”, Dogecoin does little else.

“Dogecoin has a lot of volume and volatility. If you are a day trader, there is nothing wrong with Dogecoin. There’s enough liquidity, lots of exchanges offer various pairs, and usually techniques like support and resistance trading work well. You will need a good risk-management strategy to protect yourself from a crash.

“Although Dogecoin is extremely pumped and is technically easy to trade, I do not own it myself. I invest in assets that I believe add value, such as Ethereum and many DeFi tokens do. Sure, Dogecoin has the potential to go up even more. Just keep in mind that the prices can go down just as fast as they go up due to speculation. What I have learned from the bear market in 2018 is that if a cryptocurrency price goes straight up linearly, you know it’s time to get out.”

Nick Saponaro, Co-Founder and CIO at Divi

“Doge was an early entrant to the crypto space and initially was a great example of how community can drive value. I remember when the Doge community banded together to fund the sponsorship of a NASCAR vehicle. However, it has and likely always will be a joke. Even it’s creator views it as a “parody coin.”

“With that said, it still acts as a beacon to new investors thanks to its low price point, approachable branding, and support from celebrity influencers. Its recent, meteoric rise is a symptom of an irrational, under-educated market. It shows the power of hype, memes, and social influence over retail investors.

“While Doge’s tokenomics and fundamentals are not in line with its current valuation, its recent success is a great example of both the ‘Greater Fool’ concept and the idea that value is driven purely by consensus of critical mass mindshare. Does it matter that Doge is fundamentally worth very little? The market doesn’t seem to think so.

“As long as people are making money, they are happy to ignore the underlying value proposition or lack thereof. Ultimately, this trend will end badly for most, with many losing the majority of what they have gained “on paper.”

“In time, Doge will serve as a great case study on the psychology of markets and the power of branding. For me, the problem for our industry is that Doge will end up being the reason a ton of people get in and never come back to the crypto space.”

Benoit Marzouk, CEO at BitcoinPoint.

“Dogecoin, a coin I would never buy.

“Dogecoin apparently has the 2nd largest community after Bitcoin, or probably the 3rd after Bitcoin Cash. It has attracted many young investors as it’s fun and is named after a meme of a Shiba Inu dog,

“It’s a crypto that doesn’t take itself too seriously and become appealing for some of us. Also the fact that it seems super cheap, comparable to penny stocks, can give the impression to less educated investors that it could do 100x or 1000x like Bitcoin did in the past.

“The coin has been around since 2013, already giving credibility to the doggy token, but the project started as a joke by two individuals currently owning over 30% of the entire supply.

“In light of those facts, should any serious investor ‘buy it’?

“When you look at the development of the ecosystem in Bitcoin or Ethereum, with thousands of developers building on it, is a community on Social Media pumping the price of dogecoin simply enough to bring value to the token in the long term?

“I don’t think so.

“I think celebrities and famous entrepreneurs becoming Dogecoin’s PR is creating a herd mentality effect and front running in a way, pushing the price higher. It also sends the wrong message to less educated investors that any crypto could “go to the moon”. Established exchanges are also pushing the trading of the token with a frenetic advertising campaign which is also quite disappointing. At BitcoinPoint we believe both behaviours are unethical. Our message is simple: access Bitcoin easily as it’s fully decentralised and no company or emblematic individual is behind it, a momentum that is very unlikely to ever be reproduced.

“That said, we value other crypto projects that are clearly bringing a lot value, but definitely not Dogecoin.

“At the end of the day, everyone is free to invest in any token, including Dogecoin