Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a staunch supporter of cryptocurrencies for years. His tweets on cryptos, often eccentric, saw an immediate impact on the overall crypto market, sending prices soaring high on most occasions, and also tumbling in some cases. He has mostly come out in support of meme-based altcoin Dogecoin (DOGE), even going to the extent of adopting the nickname “Dogefather” to show his allegiance. As Musk celebrates his 51st birthday on June 28, here’s a look at some of his most memorable tweets on crypto over the years.
November 27, 2017: Musk claims he didn’t create Bitcoin
Although it’s hard to ascertain exactly when Musk first tweeted on crypto, the earliest (and most hilarious) instance could be traced back to 2017, when a Twtitter user shared a news report that suggested that the SpaceX CEO was the founder of Bitcoin. To this, Musk simply replied, “Not true.”
For those unaware, Bitcoin was created in 2008 by an anonymous individual (or a group of individuals) who goes by the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto.
January 29, 2018: Musk starts joking about crypto
In his signature style, Musk posted a tweet to mark the release of new flamethrowers (you didn’t read that wrong) by his tunnel construction firm The Boring Company to say, “But wait, there’s more: the flamethrower is sentient, its safe word is “cryptocurrency” and it comes with a free blockchain.” It’s quite obvious that Musk was only joking when he said that the flamethrower comes with a blockchain. Then again, he also said that it was “sentient.” Classic Musk!
If you didn’t know, a blockchain is a digital ledger that is operated and updated by many users around the world. Cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and all other similar digital tokens exist on blockchains.
ALSO SEE: EXPLAINED | Cryptocurrency: What Is It? How Does It Work?
February 22, 2018: Musk says he doesn’t own any crypto except…
Musk tweeted that he “literally” doesn’t own any cryptocurrency, except for 0.25 BTC that was gifted by a friend years ago.
April 2, 2019: Musk shows support for DOGE for the first time
When Twitter user @iamhodler tagged Musk in a tweet that said Musk should be appointed as CEO of Dogecoin, he replied, “Dogecoin might be my fav cryptocurrency. It’s pretty cool.”
April 30, 2019: Musk tweets on Ethereum for the first time
Musk, who usually only tweets on DOGE and sometimes Bitcoin, posted a tweet that simply said, “Ethereum.” In a reply, he tweeted, “jk” (acronym for just kidding). Did Musk mean that he doesn’t support ETH? Or something else entirely? We’ll never know.
July 17, 2020: Musk says DOGE is 'inevitable'
The Tesla CEO shared a hilarious meme suggesting that Dogecoin will take over the global financial system.
On December 20, 2020, Musk reiterated his support for the altcoin with a simple tweet: “One word: Doge.”
January 29, 2021: Musk adds #Bitcoin to Twitter bio
Musk added #Bitcoin to his Twitter bio on this day, showing his support for the world’s oldest cryptocurrency. He also tweeted, “In retrospect, it was inevitable.” February 4, 2021: Musk says DOGE is ‘people’s crypto’ The Tesla CEO showed his support for Dogecoin yet again, when he tweeted, “Dogecoin is the people’s crypto.”
This tweet helped push up Dogecoin’s price by over 60 percent.
On the same day, he tweeted the now-famous Lion King-inspire meme, boosting DOGE prices to an all-time high of $0.73.
March 24, 2021: Musk said Tesla now accepts BTC payment
Musk tweeted, “You can now buy a Tesla with Bitcoin.” He also said that the BTC tokens paid to Tesla will be retained as a crypto and not be converted to fiat currency. Later in May, Musk withheld BTC payments for Tesla products owing to growing concerns at the time regarding Bitcoin mining’s immense power needs and the detrimental effect it has on the environment.
April 1, 2021: Musk wants to put DOGE on the Moon…literally
On April Fool’s Day, the SpaceX CEO tweeted that his space exploration company will “put a literal Dogecoin on the literal Moon.” To date, a Dogecoin hasn’t been sent to the lunar surface yet. So, it’s safe to assume that the tweet was nothing but a harmless April’s Fool joke. Or perhaps, he was referring to the launch of a DOGE-funder space mission. More on that later.
Seeing his continued support for DOGE, fans awarded Musk the nickname, “Dogefather,” a moniker which he himself adopted on April 28, when he tweeted right before his appearance as a 'Saturday Night Live' host, “The Dogefather SNL May 8.”
May 9, 2021: Musk said SpaceX will launch a DOGE-funded mission
Probably following up on his April 1 tweet, Musk said that SpaceX will accept Dogecoin as full payment for a lunar payload for its DOGE-1 space mission. The mission is expected to be launched sometime in 2022.
September 13, 2021: Musk shares photo of his new pet dog, boosting FLOKI prices
In June, Musk tweeted that he will be getting a Shiba Inu dog (the same breed that inspired the ‘Doge’ memes) and will name it “Floki.” On September 13, he tweeted a photo of Floki.
This tweet inadvertently pushed up the prices of the Floki Inu (FLOKI) crypto coin by nearly 1,000 percent in 24 hours.
March 14, 2022: Musk said he won’t sell his BTC, ETH, or DOGE holdings
Showing his continuing support for cryptocurrencies, Musk said that he won’t be selling his Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Dogecoin assets. However, he did advise that it is “generally better to own physical things like a home or stock in companies” instead of fiat money “when inflation is high.”
June 19, 2022: Musk said he will keep on supporting, buying DOGE
Musk reaffirmed that he will continue supporting Dogecoin and keep buying it as well. He also said DOGE payments may soon be supported for buying Tesla and SpaceX merchandise. This announcement came a couple of days after Musk was sued for $258 billion by DOGE investor over an alleged DOGE pyramid scheme.
Disclaimer: Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions. Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is subject to market risks. Readers are advised to seek expert advice and read offer document(s) along with related important literature on the subject carefully before making any kind of investment whatsoever. Cryptocurrency market predictions are speculative and any investment made shall be at the sole cost and risk of the readers.