What Does the Departure of a Key Developer Mean for Dogecoin?
A key developer at leading meme coin Dogecoin, Ross Nicoll, has recently announced that he will be leaving the team. Nicoll is both a member of the Dogecoin Foundation Advisory Board and is a core developer at Dogecoin. As one of its core developers, Nicoll has recently struggled with the issue of the Dogecoin trademark. While there has also been speculation regarding the reasons for his departure from Dogecoin.
To that end, in a blog post, Ross Nicoll explained his reasons for leaving Dogecoin, saying, “I am going to be stepping away from Dogecoin, for a number of reasons. Primarily the stress involved is overwhelming and I need to step back to focus on myself for a period. There is a further complication that my employer for my day job is moving into the blockchain space, leading to a risk of conflict of interest if I remain as a Director.” Although despite the answer, some people are left wondering what effect Ross Nicoll’s departure will have on Dogecoin. Is there still enough momentum for it to move forward?
Dogecoin’s meteoric growth and useless infrastructure
Dogecoin is a project that constantly defies expectations, and a typical project, in BigONE’s opinion, begins with a plan that clearly states what it intends to do. Regular projects will register their trademarks to increase the value of their brand. A typical project will have full-time employees to build a stable core team rather than part-time semi-volunteers. A specific project should have a consistent office space, not a roving residence. Dogecoin is not normal, as with many cryptocurrency industry projects. In any case, Dogecoin is a unique presence in the cryptocurrency world. Dogecoin, which was initially created in late 2013as a joke, and was not intended to be a long-term operation because it was not founded with a practical use case in mind and thus has no sound business plan, which also explains why it does not require trademark registration.
However, the meme token’s cavalier attitude and fun-loving nature have won over much of the investor community, as evidenced by Dogecoin’s exponentially growing market cap. Dogecoin’s market value has now reached $17 billion, which is equivalent to the market value of some large multinational corporations. To some extent, Dogecoin’s success can be attributed to the tireless efforts of Nicoll. At the same time, Dogecoin began its $17 billion market cap as a joke. In early 2021, Dogecoin gained cult status on Reddit’s WallStreetBets message board — the prime instigator behind the GameStop affair in January 2021, where enthusiasts had promised to propel its value “to the moon”, according to Forbes.
The current issue with Dogecoin is that redesigning this multi-billion-dollar project is extremely difficult, including several missing elements such as registered trademarks and development plans. In addition, the foundation’s advisory board consists of some crypto heavyweights, including Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin. The reorganization of the foundation was intended to assist Dogecoin in scaling and becoming a widely usable cryptocurrency, and for Dogecoin to begin to gain traction as a payment method. In addition, US billionaire Mark Cuban, a cryptocurrency enthusiast, has stated publicly that Dogecoin is a medium for purchasing goods and services. Cuban told US-broadcaster CNBC recently that not only is Dogecoin “a medium that can be used for the acquisition of goods and services,” but that also “the community for doge is the strongest when it comes to using it as a medium of exchange.”
Can Dogecoin move on after Nicoll’s departure?
For the time being, Ross Nicoll’s statement does not appear to have had a significant impact on the price, as the Dogecoin team has stated that he will continue to serve as an advisor. Nonetheless, his departure has exposed two significant issues for Dogecoin. One is that Dogecoin needs to establish a stable core team, to attract more full-time employees. Another element key to a successful strategy is to register its trademark as soon as possible to maximize the brand effect. When the Dogecoin Foundation reformed in August 2021, the various problems with Dogecoin were recognized. The foundation promised at the time that it would hire full-time staff to work on Dogecoin, but six months later, instead of changing, Dogecoin has lost a key figure.
As outlined in Nicoll’s blog post that several parties were registering trademarks for Dogecoin, apparently to claim they were Dogecoin. “External parties we had never heard of managed to get articles published which referred to them as Dogecoin developers. In the summer of 2021, there was a potential lawsuit against the developers from someone who claimed we were responsible for their funds,” confirmed Nicolls.
This series of legal disputes has diverted the Dogecoin Foundation’s attention away from the critical work at hand, putting additional strain on the already overworked Dogecoin team. According to BigONE, the restructured foundation works in a challenging environment that complicates an otherwise relatively simple job, but it is still moving forward. With nothing, Dogecoin was able to grow into a $17 billion project. Many people believe that the foundation’s reorganization will allow it to continue to outperform expectations and possibly become a new payment method. However, BigONE believes that before investing in any cryptocurrency, you should carefully consider what is going on behind the scenes. And, as much as possible, choose cryptocurrency projects with a strong foundation and a stable development team. “We’ve had some great times together, Dogecoin, and I’ll still be around, just a lot quieter. Lastly, remember; Do Only Good Everyday,” Nicoll’s said to end his post.
