Crashing crypto prices spooked some new investors. Others are doubling down

The mood only got more frenzied from there. Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency inspired by an internet meme featuring a shiba inu dog, began skyrocketing in April, ultimately hitting an all-time high of nearly 74 cents last month. That attracted even more speculative investors, some of whom placed additional bets on spinoffs that have no practical use and are known in the crypto community as “shitcoins.”