DogeChain is a ‘layer-2 for DogeCoin’ that allegedly allows for DeFi protocls, NFT collections, games, and dApps (decentralized apps). DogeCoin was created as a joke coin and somehow has become a long-time & established meme coin and favorite of retail investors. With the latest move of a layer-2 network, it appears like the meme is trying to be taken more serious.
DogeCoin became such a cultural hit that it sparked a handful of copycat and…copydog?…coins. The first one to rise to prominence was Shiba Inu Coin.
There have been dog & cat coins named after Elon Musk’s pets, MMA-related dog coins, and many more that we have not bothered to keep up with. Many of these have had questionable utility and largely been used as pump and dump schemes. However, both $DOGE and $SHIB are still around and possess a sizable market cap.
What is DogeCoin ($DOGE)?
If you are new to crypto or only in the main coins, you can get up-to-speed here. However, DogeCoin ($DOGE) was a joke coin started way back in 2013 by 2 software engineers, Billy Marcus and Jackson Palmer. The coin was based on a popular meme at the time which showed a Shiba Inu dog and misspelled it as a ‘doge’.
The coin was started as a joke on Bitcoin and gained notoriety by doing publicity stunts. They raised funds to send the Jamaican Bobsled team to the 2014 Olympics (ala the absolute classical and Emmy Award winning film ‘Cool Runnings’). They also sponsored a NASCAR diver.
Doge really became popular in 2021 in the WallStreetBets message board on Reddit as the group was pushing all sorts of meme and trash ‘to the moon’. At its height, $DOGE reached a value of nearly $0.69 (noice) and was up over 100x in a year partially driven by Elon Musk calling it his favorite crypto.
DogeCoin is still a top 20 coin by market cap to this day.
DogeCoin has its own dedicated blockchain and uses cryptography on all transactions, similar to other cryptos. It operates a proof of work (PoW) mechanism where miners have to solve algorithms to mine a new block. However, DogeCoin has no lifetime cap and was structured to be highly inflationary.
What is DogeChain (DC)?
DogeChain ($DC) is a faux layer-2 network that was built to support DogeCoin. However, DogeChain uses a separate network, since DogeCoin is incapable to having a network built on top of it. DogeChain is built on Polygon, the Ethereum sidechain. It is also compatible with the EVM (Etherum Virtual Machine) allowing it to host Ethereum games and apps.
DogeChain is not an ‘official’ project of the DogeCoin Foundation and is separate from the DogeCoin blockchain explorer of a similar name.
As of this writing, DogeChain has over 60k wallets and 500k total transactions. The website has laid out plans for future airdrops to early adaptors and a full suite of DeFi protocols and utility. If you have been waiting to stake dog coins and buy dog-based NFTs, this is the moment you have been waiting for.
The DogeChain devs are heavily leaning into the meme nature of $DOGE and the websites reflect the irreverent feel the crypto embodies.
How does DogeChain Work?
If you want to interact with DogeChain and you hodl DogeCoin ($DOGE), you can bridge $DOGE over to receive wrapped DogeCoin ($wDOGE). Having $wDOGE allows you to interact with the protocols on DogeChain, including things like decentralized exchanges (DEXs). Additionally you can use your $wDOGE to pay gas on the chain.
DogeCoin has been very limited in its uses so far, largely only able to transact in a limited capacity and as a speculative betting mechanism. The addition of DogeChain allows for a potential slate of DeFi protocols and is drawing a lot of excitement from the Doge community.
However, many users are moving tokens over to DogeChain expecting to get rug-pulled. Sadly, when a new network is set up, many of the first protocols are scams and pump & dump schemes that largely serve as a way to enrich crypto ‘influencers’ (aka shills) and dishonest devs.
Many crypto veterans have put their trust in Ethereum and its founder Vitalik Buterin (shown to the left). Vitalik has gained notoriety for his huge…brain…and massive…influence over the crypto space. He has given a hard pump to many wallets. There is just something about the alien looking founder of Ethereum that makes him seem like a Chad.
Can DogeChain compete with a man of such large and girthy talents? It is yet to be seen, but some in the Doge community think it may.
Conclusion – DogeChain The Next Speculative Boom?
DogeChain currently looks like the wild west days of sh!tcoins with funny names being launched in quick succession.
Lastly, the Doge rival, Shiba Inu ($SHIB) is planning to launch it’s own layer-2 network under the name Shibarium. Shiba Inu is also a dog themed coin launched after Doge’s success but as a non-joke meme coin. (It is important to understand what is a joke meme coin vs a serious meme coin Anon).
If you decide to speculate on the new chain, be wary of the high likelihood of early protocols being short-lived. However, the chain and $DC coin do appear to have some initial success over the first few days of its existence.
