On Saturday evening, Tesla and SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk, hosted “Saturday Night Live.” Many cryptocurrency investors were watching closely to see if Musk would mention the previously-surging coin, dogecoin.
Known as the self-proclaimed “Dogefather,” Musk has been an outspoken fan of the cryptocurrency, dogecoin, a meme-inspired coin. Dogecoin was mentioned on multiple occasions during the show. However, during Musk’s episode of the comedy series, the price of dogecoin plummeted.
During Musk’s monologue, dogecoin was mentioned briefly as the SpaceX CEO was joined by his mother, Maye, on stage.
“I’m excited for my mother’s day gift. I just hope it’s not dogecoin,” Musk’s mother said. “It is,” Musk responded. “It sure is.”
Monologue! 💫 @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/xeH1EOU79A
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) May 9, 2021
Later, Musk appeared on the show’s “Weekend Update” segment as financial expert “Lloyd Ostertag” to discuss the subject of cryptocurrency.
“They’re a type of digital money,” Musk said, explaining the fundamental definition of cryptocurrencies. “But instead of being controlled by a central government, they’re decentralized using blockchain technology.”
“And lately, prices have been soaring for cryptos like bitcoin, ethereum, and especially dogecoin,” Musk continued.
Lloyd Ostertag stopped by the desk to talk cryptocurrency. pic.twitter.com/cuILxOBJlj
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) May 9, 2021
“What is dogecoin?” asked co-host Michael Che.
“Well, it actually started as a joke based on an internet meme, but now it’s taken off in a very real way,” responded Musk.
“OK, but what is dogecoin?” repeated Che.
“Well, it was created in 2013 and has a circulating supply of 117 billion coins, of which 113 billion have already been mined,” continued Musk.
“All right, cool. So what is dogecoin?” asked Che, again.
After both Che and co-host Colin Jost continued to ask what dogecoin is, Musk was eventually asked whether dogecoin was a “hustle.”
“Yeah, it’s a hustle,” Musk said.
“To the moon!” Musk added, using “a catchphrase popular among doge enthusiasts intent on driving the value of the cryptocurrency to one dollar.”
CNN reported, “After pumping up the value of the cryptocurrency in the lead-up to Musk’s SNL appearance, investors sold off dogecoin sharply after the Musks talked about it on the show. Dogecoin was down 40%, trading as low as 44 cents early Sunday. The cryptocurrency started Saturday trading at around 70 cents and was selling for about 66 cents just before SNL went on the air at 11:30 pm ET.”
Dogecoin was apparently being traded so “actively” that Robinhood, the popular trading app, announced that they were experiencing “issues.”
“Update: We’re currently experiencing issues with crypto trading. We’re working to resolve this as soon as possible,” Robinhood tweeted.
Update: We’re currently experiencing issues with crypto trading. We're working to resolve this as soon as possible. For the latest updates, check https://t.co/ZS733G6N1J
— Robinhood Help (@AskRobinhood) May 9, 2021
As CNBC noted, “This isn’t the first time that Robinhood has missed out on major trading volume in dogecoin. Last month, the trading platform said customers experienced ‘sporadic crypto order failures’ during a dogecoin rally.”
Since January, dogecoin has increased in value by more than 12,000%, and has gained 800% in May. As of the morning of May 9, the coin is priced at $0.5044470, representing a 24-hour drop of 29.73%. The cryptocurrency reached an all-time high of over $0.70 in early May.