The Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin begins his speech at EDCON 2024 by introducing himself as a Dogecoin hodler.
The global Ethereum community congregated in Tokyo, Japan from July 24 to 30 for this year’s Ethereum Development Conference (EDCON). Notably, the Conference featured keynotes from Ethereum founders Joseph Lubin and Vitalik Buterin.
In an interesting turn of events, Buterin, scheduled to speak on July 30, showed up on stage with a white horse head mask with black details, dressed in a dark kimono garment, characterized by its loose fit and wide sleeves.
Although Buterin was visibly recognizable, the audience played along with the hidden identity charade, promptly asking him, “who are you?” In response, Buterin declared that he was a Dogecoin hodler.
Everyone: Who are you?
V: I'm a Dogecoin hodler.#EDCON2024 @dogecoin @VitalikButerin pic.twitter.com/Uyj9A0U8k3
— EDCON (@EDCON2024) July 30, 2024
A subsequent inquiry on his identity then led to him pulling off his mask. The opening theatrics were soon overshadowed by Buterin’s speech at the event, in which he discussed Ethereum’s future trajectory for the next ten years.
However, what captured the attention of some attendees was Buterin choosing to introduce himself as a Dogecoin hodler. While this might be surprising to some proponents early in the space, Buterin has been known for his affinity for the original meme coin.
Vitalik Buterin’s Dealings with Dogecoin
Speaking with podcast host Lex Friedman in June 2021, Buterin revealed that Dogecoin was one of the first fun coins he developed an interest for. He confirmed that he invested $25,000 in Dogecoin in 2016, three years after the meme coin launched. According to him, as at June 2021, the $25,000 investment had skyrocketed to $4.3 million.
Buterin noted that he gave the money to charity. Despite emphasizing the lack of fundamentals behind his Dogecoin investment, he acknowledged that it was one of his best investment choices.
In May 2022, David Gokhshtein, a former Congressional Candidate in the U.S., speculated an imminent collaboration between Buterin and Dogecoin after the Ethereum founder reportedly donated $1 million in Ethereum to the Dogecoin Foundation.
Waiting for VB to just come out and say that he’s working on some dope sh*t to help take $DOGE to the next level. https://t.co/LHPUIjCPBp
— David Gokhshtein (@davidgokhshtein) May 16, 2022
In November of the same year, Buterin donated an additional 20 million DOGE to the Dogecoin Foundation. Interestingly, Buterin had joined the advisory board of the Dogecoin Foundation in August 2021. Also, in an interview in January 2022, Buterin discussed the possibility of helping Dogecoin switch to Proof-of-Stake.
Buterin has not extended the same grace to Shiba Inu, Dogecoin’s closest competitor, despite SHIB being built on Ethereum. He confirmed that he expected Shiba Inu to become just another meme coin that easily crashes after the immediate hype. Nonetheless, he stressed that SHIB exceeded his expectations.
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