Dogecoin hits record level 0:46
New Delhi (CNN Business) -
Bitcoin and ethereum aren't the only digital currencies breaking records this week.
Dogecoin, the cryptocurrency whose logo is the face of a Shiba Inu dog, exceeded 10 cents for the first time.
The virtual currency, which started as an internet parody more than seven years ago, has risen more than 85% in the last 24 hours and is trading at $ 0.13, according to CoinDesk.
Its market capitalization already exceeds US $ 17,000 million.
This latest rally comes as investors prepare for the IPO of cryptocurrency platform Coinbase Global, which could help validate the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies as a business.
Bitcoin also shot to a new high above $ 62,700 this week in anticipation of that IPO.
Other cryptocurrencies have also posted big gains.
But the rise of dogecoin is noteworthy.
The coin has soared more than 2,000% since the beginning of the year, and it has a huge fan in Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whose tweets about dogecoin have pushed the value up at times.
Elon Musk backs cryptocurrency Dogecoin 0:50
Dogecoin has also enjoyed something of a cult status on Reddit, where a popular group, not unlike the WallStreetBets group behind the GameStop fever, decided earlier this year to push its value 'to the moon'.
Dogecoin soared more than 600% after that push.
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Musk is the richest admirer of dogecoin, but in the past he has been critical of bitcoin, which is more established, once calling it "garbage" in a tweet.
However, in an interview in February on the Clubhouse social app, Musk said that he should have bought that digital currency eight years ago.
His company Tesla has also promised customers that they will be able to buy their cars with bitcoin.
You can now buy a Tesla with bitcoins 1:26
Coinbase, for its part, is set to debut on Wednesday.
The company is profitable and has recorded strong revenue growth.
Based on recent Coinbase private stock transactions, the company is valued at a staggering level of nearly $ 68 billion.
To put it in context, it's a little more than the market value of the Intercontinental Exchange, which owns the New York Stock Exchange.
Paul R. La Monica and Charles Riley contributed to this report.
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