Cryptocurrency has become investors’ favourite digital asset and as a result the prices of several cryptos have rallied to make new highs this year, according to the social media analytics (SMA) platform of GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
Social media conversations around cryptocurrency as a topic surged year-on-year by more than 400 per cent in 2021, according to Smitarani Tripathy, Social Media Analyst at GlobalData.
Mainstreamed by social media
But independent analysts also noted that it is undeniable that much of cryptocurrency growth and popularity is attributed to social media.
This can be traced back to the humble beginnings of the digital currency and how it has since grown to be mainstreamed by various social media channels in what has been a mutually beneficial relationship.
‘Bitcoin’ emerged as the most mentioned cryptocurrency in terms of social media conversations among Twitter Influencers and Redditors in 2021, according GlobalData’s SMA platform.
Musk’s power tweets
Mentions by technical experts, blockchain experts, CEOs, and fintech experts have been found to be more impactful to drive discussions around crypto.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has proved to be one of the most influential contributors for the crypto market, and has played as a catalyst for top cryptos such as Bitcoin and Dogecoin.
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Bitcoin gained the highest conversations on social media when it traded above $66,000, after the Securities and Exchange Commission approved US bitcoin futures exchange-traded funds for trading.
Rise in influencer talk
Social media discussions also surged when Elon Musk tweeted about not accepting Bitcoins to buy Tesla cars over concerns about the environmental costs of crypto mining.
Social media conversations around Ethereum soared when it outperformed Bitcoin. Ethereum’s association with ancillary growth sectors in the cryptocurrency world such as decentralised finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and metaverse were some key drivers for its stellar performance.
A rise in influencer discussions around Ethereum on GlobalData’s SMA was noticed when Ethereum was hyped as the biggest metaverse token in crypto and used most commonly for digital land.
Dogecoin, 3rd most discussed
Dogecoin emerged as the third most discussed crypto with more than 8,000 per cent rise over 2020. Conversations around Dogecoin jumped when the crypto price zoomed after a Musk tweet about launch of a satellite named as DOGE-1 in 2022 and mentioned it as future of currency.
The recent spike discussion around Dogecoin was majorly driven by Musk’s tweet to accept Dogecoin for merchandise, as assessed by GloalData’s SMA platform.
Another spike around Dogecoin was recorded when it ranked among the top 10 cryptos by market capitalisation as the meme crypto took cues from suspension of trading of GameStop, at Robinhood.
Shiba INU, among top movers
Polkadot, Binance Coin, Tether, Solana and Shiba INU were the other top-mentioned cryptos among social media discussions during the year.
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Among these, conversations around Shiba INU, a so-called rival meme token of Dogecoin, surged more than 16,000 per cent, the highest growth compared to other top 10 cryptocurrencies.
The highest spike in social media conversations around Shiba INU was driven by market speculation on listing of it in Robinhood as investors clamoured through a petition, which also led prices to skyrocket.