Dogecoin pops on Tesla accepting meme coin as payment

Dogecoin rose around 10% on Friday after Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the electric car company would be accepting the cryptocurrency as a form of payment for certain merchandise.

Video transcript

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ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Elon Musk is at it again, moving the price of Dogecoin after saying the alt crypto can be used to buy Tesla merch. Yahoo Finance's Jennifer Schonberger now with more. And last check, I saw Doge up about 16%, Jennifer. What did Elon have to say?

JENNIFER SCHONBERGER: Hey there. Yep, that's right. Elon Musk yet again giving Dogecoin a pop. The CEO of Tesla saying as he said in a tweet, quote, "Tesla merch buyable with Dogecoin." That single tweet sending the dog-themed Dogecoin up as much as 18% to $0.20 and change in the session now, as you said, around 16% up to around $0.18 in change.

And this isn't the first time that Musk has tweeted about the ability of customers to purchase Tesla merch using Dogecoin, and it isn't the first time he's moved cryptocurrencies. Back in December, Musk said that customers would be able to begin buying Tesla merchandise using Dogecoin, sending Doge higher. But back in May, when he appeared on "Saturday Tonight Live," Musk, sort of playing a character, admitted that he didn't know what Dogecoin really was, and it was, quote, "just a hustle." And that sent the token lower on the session.

Customers can buy Tesla merchandise ranging from apparel to model Teslas and mugs with Dogecoin. But when it comes to purchasing the electric vehicles, Tesla is not accepting Doge for that. Dogecoin getting a bid today as other cryptocurrencies have been flipping back and forth between the red and the green, now mostly back in the green here late in the session. And while Doge is getting a bid today, it is still down some 75% since its all-time high of around $0.74 back in May, Alexis.