The Omicron cryptocurrency has been the subject of frantic activity with a roller coaster course since the WHO decided to give this name to the new variant of the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19.
Read alsoThe Omicron variant shakes up budgetary discipline
While hitherto unknown and stable in recent weeks, digital currency Omicron hit a high of nearly $ 700 on Monday morning, about ten times more than two days earlier, according to specialist site CoinMarketCap.
The name given on Friday by the World Health Organization (WHO) to the new variant detected in South Africa has probably exploded the value of this virtual currency, which had been created in early November by an actor already present in the world of cryptoassets.
To facilitate public debates on variants, the WHO names them using the name of the letters of the Greek alphabet (alpha, beta, gamma, delta, etc.), which is more accessible to a non-scientific audience and which allows to avoid stigmatizing the country where this variant was initially discovered.
Russian mountains
On their site, the founders of the cryptocurrency Omicron make no reference to Covid-19. They explain that they hope that their assets
"will be able to function as a currency capable of retaining its purchasing power independently of the volatility of the market"
. On Monday, the value of the Omicron fell back to $ 152 before rebounding and stabilizing at $ 350 around 5 p.m., according to CoinMarketCap, another five times higher than at the end of last week.
At the beginning of November, another cryptocurrency had experienced dizzying success, before collapsing: the "Squid coin" was created on the theme of the successful Squid Game series by anonymous people.
From around $ 0.7 at its launch on October 21, the unit rose on November 1 to $ 2,856, before falling to $ 0.003 the next day.
Buyers also found they couldn't sell it and cash in on their profits, and the creators disappeared from social media.
