Elon Musk has caused a surge in the crypto market after sharing a picture of his new puppy.
The world-famous billionaire has introduced his 59.9 million Twitter followers to his new Shiba Inu puppy called Floki.
He shared a picture of his sleeping pup alongside the caption “Floki has arrived” – and ended up sparking a 150 per cent increase in little-known cryptocurrencies with similar names.
Floki Inu has now reached a record high following Elton’s tweet about his new dog.
Although these obscure currencies aren’t usually lucrative, the ripple effect also extended to more familiar cryptocurrencies, such as Dogecoin and Baby Dodge Coin.
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Native to Japan, the Shiba Inu breed are small-to-medium sized, have tendencies to be independent, are tricky to train and devotees of self-grooming - they arguably share more traits with cats than dogs.
According to the American Kennel Club, they’re an ancient breed that dates back to 7000BC and originally used for hunting.
While ‘inu’ literally translates as dog, the meaning of ‘shiba’ remains a mystery, but they do have tendencies to be independent, tricky to train and devotees of self-grooming, so arguably share more traits with cats than dogs.
But this isn’t the first time the SpaceX founder's influence on social media has impacted crypto markets, as many people look to him for financial inspiration globally.
One short message on social media often has a dramatic impact on the bitcoin-sphere, both positively and detrimentally.
