Grayscale Investments Launches Dogecoin Trust

Crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments has launched the Dogecoin Trust, providing individual and institutional accredited investors exposure to the DOGE memecoin in a share-based format.

Grayscale believes DOGE has transitioned from a memecoin of a Shiba Inu to a tool for global financial inclusion, grassroots activism, and a viable means of payment. The company stated, “Due to its widespread accessibility, affordability, and rapid transaction speeds, DOGE has garnered significant adoption worldwide.”

DOGE is the largest memecoin and the eighth largest cryptocurrency, with a market capitalization of over $50 billion, according to The Block’s prices page. Created in 2013 as a joke, DOGE is the native cryptocurrency of the Dogecoin network, originally forked from Litecoin, a Bitcoin derivative.

Grayscale’s Dogecoin Trust launch comes amid renewed momentum for DOGE following the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under U.S. President Donald Trump, led by Tesla CEO and longtime DOGE supporter Elon Musk. The White House unit has reportedly explored putting federal government systems on-chain, with potential use cases including tracking federal spending, managing buildings, and facilitating payments—though discussions remain in their early stages.

Earlier this week, crypto asset manager Bitwise filed an S-1 registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a spot Dogecoin ETF. Osprey Funds and Rex Shares have also submitted similar proposals.

Could a Dogecoin ETF become a reality this year? Nate Geraci, ETF Store President, stated, “I think everything is on the table moving forward under the new administration.” Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst, remarked, “Today’s satire is tomorrow’s ETF.”

Meanwhile, not everyone is convinced. Louis Sykes, a crypto analyst at All-Star Charts, expressed that he’s confident in seeing a Solana ETF trading in the first half of 2025, but added, “DOGE is far less likely… let’s just say Wall Street prefers assets that weren’t born as a meme.”