With cryptocurrencies on the rise in 2024, Dogecoin Its holders are determined to take their multi-million dollar coins to the moon.

And if recent events are any indication, the currency — often courted by billionaire Elon Musk — is already part of the way there.

Dogecoin has had a busy year, from hitting its highest price in three years to becoming the namesake of an additional government initiative in the US, and even inspiring new exchange-traded products.

Although its network has encountered some technical issues recently, the Shiba Inu-inspired token is still heading into the new year with plenty of momentum.

Here's a look at Dogecoin in 2024.

Musk and Trump lead DOGE

Dogecoin rose to The highest level in three years Valued at $0.48 in early December, as President-elect Donald Trump and his ally Musk sparked positive investor sentiment towards the digital asset.

The digital currency peaked at an all-time high of $0.73 in May 2021, and spent the following years well below that level until its recent recovery.

The price of Dogecoin began rising a few months ago as Trump, the self-proclaimed crypto champion, carved out a path toward reclaiming the White House. His Election Day victory sparked broader enthusiasm in the cryptocurrency market, which benefited meme cryptocurrencies, including Dogecoin.

The currency also rose several times after Musk, in a series of posts on X (formerly known as Twitter), referenced the digital currency alongside a proposed government agency aimed at cutting bureaucratic spending.

Musk and Ramaswamy to lead DOGE

Shortly after Election Day, Trump made the announcement Elon Musk and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy would lead An American non-governmental administration that shares a name with Dogecoin.

The Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, aims to reduce U.S Government spendingAnd reduce the federal budget deficit. Musk Initiative raised For weeks before it was officially announced, which excited Dogecoin holders.

“We'll also have a leaderboard for the most insanely stupid spending of your tax money,” Musk said in November on X. “This will be very tragic and very interesting.”

Dogecoin price also rose after Musk shared his plans for the initiative in a meeting Trump rally In October. Although DOGE appears to be named after Musk's beloved meme currency — its abbreviation matches the Dogecoin ticker, plus Trump sells T-shirts with him and Musk alongside a Shiba Inu dog — the initiative itself has nothing to do with cryptocurrencies.

Dogecoin faces technical hurdles

Dogecoin hit an unexpected snag earlier this month when the blockchain creator disabled about 70% of public nodes on the network.

Andreas Cole The alleged one In X's post on December 11, he removed hundreds of public nodes that allegedly powered the Dogecoin network. He said he exploited a "Death Note" bug in the blockchain code using an old laptop in El Salvador.

"death note" insect The individual was able to cause the node to die due to a segmentation error, according to software engineer Tobias Ruck, who helped identify the vulnerability.

However, the Dogecoin Foundation later claimed that Cole's claim was false, arguing that more than 1,000 Dogecoin nodes were not affected during the alleged attack. The organization also noted that the network withstood the takedown attempt.

However, the competing claims have sparked a storm within the Dogecoin community. Some community members argued that the bug exposed major security flaws in the network.

“Anyone could take down the entire Dogecoin network in an instant,” Cole said in X’s post. However, the Dogecoin Foundation has addressed these concerns.

said Timothy Stebbing, Director of the Dogecoin Foundation Decryption The error is not as big a problem as it may seem. It was patched in early December, and node operators gradually updated their devices to protect against the vulnerability, Stebbing said.

According to Stebbing, the blockchain also contains many privately run nodes, making them more difficult to identify and remove than public nodes that may have been affected by the alleged attack.

Dogecoin ETFs – Yes, really

With spot Bitcoin and Ethereum Exchange-traded funds could receive approval in the United States earlier this year Dogecoin-based ETFs Analysts said this technology could one day become available to investors in the United States Decryption.

“The ETF industry is notorious for throwing spaghetti at the wall,” said Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg ETF analyst. Decryption In November. “I imagine we'll see all kinds of things tried, including DOGE.”

It remains to be seen whether these ETFs will gain approval over the next year, but some issuers are already considering offering funds backed by the Shiba Inu-inspired token. According to a blog post published last October, Grayscale is already considering Dogecoin for inclusion in its future exchange-traded products.

Valour, a subsidiary of Canadian cryptocurrency company DeFi Technologies, unveil The Valor Dogecoin (DOGE) SEK ETP went live in Sweden in November this year, marking the region's first exchange-traded product that provides exposure to meme-inspired cryptocurrencies.

With its smaller list compared to major exchanges like Nasdaq, the Spotlight Stock Market provides a platform for niche offerings. The exchange hosts 125 stocks and 25 exchange-traded products, ensuring access to unique investment opportunities.

Modified by Sebastian Sinclair