Now that Elon Musk is finally leaving the Trump administration, it's time to forget about Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE). While there was hope earlier in the year that the billionaire tech titan might be able to help push up the price of this meme coin, that simply hasn't happened. For the year, Dogecoin is down a whopping 40%.

But all hope is not lost. There are plenty of other options if you are looking for a low-cost, high-upside cryptocurrency. My favorite pick right now is XRP (CRYPTO: XRP), which is up a modest 6% for the year. Here's why you should consider it for your portfolio.

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Utility coin vs. meme coin

Dogecoin has always been -- and always will be -- a meme coin. Moreover, it was created as an internet joke, so it was never meant to be serious. The only way Dogecoin can increase in value is through hype, buzz, and speculation.

Musk's brief tenure in the White House is proof of that. Even though he had no direct role in any of the White House's crypto policies, the mere fact that he created a government-adjacent group called DOGE -- the same as the ticker symbol for Dogecoin -- created quite a bit of hype and speculation that something big might be coming for Dogecoin. But nothing ever did.

Image source: Getty Images.

In contrast, XRP has real utility. In other words, you can actually use it for something of value. XRP is primarily used as a bridge currency. As such, it can be used to facilitate cross-border transactions, as well as to convert one fiat currency (such as the U.S. dollar) into another fiat currency. All of this runs on the XRP blockchain, and is supported by Ripple Labs, a San Francisco-based tech company that has been around since 2012.

XRP's blockchain technology has already been embraced by large financial institutions as a way to move money around the world in a way that is cheaper and faster than with traditional financial tools. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has even suggested that the XRP payment network might eventually become even bigger than SWIFT, as it is adopted by more and more global institutions.

Higher upside potential

During the previous crypto bull market rally, Dogecoin soared in value seemingly overnight. It was the first-ever meme coin, and investors piled into it, hoping to become crypto millionaires.

But that was four years ago. In May 2021, Elon Musk appeared on NBC's Saturday Night Live at exactly the moment when many people thought Dogecoin was headed to the moon.

Dogecoin never made it to the moon. In fact, it couldn't even reach escape velocity. Dogecoin reached an all-time high of $0.74, and never recovered. Today, it's trading for $0.20. Never once in its history has it ever broken the $1 mark.

In contrast, XRP has already shown its tremendous upside potential. Yes, it was flatlining around the $0.50 mark for much of 2024, but it then suddenly went parabolic after the U.S. presidential election. At one point, it was up as much as 600% after the election.

Granted, XRP has cooled off considerably since then. It's now trading for just $2, and is down nearly 35% from its 52-week high earlier in the year. But it's still one of the only top cryptocurrencies up for the year.

Analysts and investors remain bullish on XRP's long-term prospects. It could easily double in value, to regain its all-time high of $3.84. Some even think XRP might soar in value to $10 or higher.

Sell Dogecoin, buy XRP

I get the allure of Dogecoin -- it's cheap and it's fun. But investing in Dogecoin just doesn't make sense, especially when it's down 40% for the year. At a time of maximum global macroeconomic uncertainty, the last thing smart investors want to be holding is a dog-themed meme coin with a funny name.

A better option would be XRP, which is still relatively cheap -- just $2, less than a cup of coffee these days! And, at times, XRP trades much like a meme coin. Just a hint or whisper of something big coming for XRP is often enough to send it higher. But at least XRP has some utility to it, and has much higher upside than Dogecoin over the long haul. If you are choosing between XRP and Dogecoin, this one's a no-brainer.

Should you invest $1,000 in XRP right now?

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Dominic Basulto has positions in XRP. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends XRP. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) teamed up with DOGE to fire 10,000 employees while relying on "hopelessly error-ridden" personnel records, a class-action complaint filed yesterday alleged. The lawsuit said the HHS terminated thousands of workers on April 1, shortly after sharing the flawed personnel records with the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

"These agencies knew that the records were hopelessly error-ridden, and that the records should have been used, if at all, with great caution," said the lawsuit filed in US District Court for the District of Columbia. "Instead of taking steps to verify the contents of the records and correct the systemic inaccuracies, the agencies promptly used them to fire 10,000 employees."

The case was filed by a law firm founded by former Justice Department attorneys on behalf of seven named plaintiffs and all others who were laid off as part of the April 1 Reduction in Force (RIF). It alleges that the government violated the Privacy Act, which requires agencies to verify the accuracy of information used as the basis for adverse actions against employees.

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A generally worried investor base and promising developments with a rival cryptocurrency segment put the kibosh on Dogecoin's (CRYPTO: DOGE) value on Thursday. The foundational meme coin stumbled late that afternoon, declining nearly 14% in value as of 4 p.m. ET. By contrast, the equity market wasn't suffering nearly as much, with the S&P 500 index closing the day 0.5% lower.

Trade war blues

The trade war between the U.S. and its major trading partners ground on Thursday, with no end immediately in sight. The conflict hasn't been beneficial to speculative assets like cryptocurrencies generally. Dogecoin -- not nearly as useful a coin or blockchain as a growing number of altcoins -- is highly speculative even among other cryptos.

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Image source: Getty Images.

Thursday afternoon it was reported that imports of foreign-manufactured goods plummeted month-to-month in April, showing that the dispute is having a tangible effect on the structure of the domestic and global economies. Investors tend to like steady and predictable developments in both, not dramatic swings.

Compounding problems for Dogecoin and other meme coins, the crypto world seems to be more focused on (and enthusiastic about) stablecoins. On Thursday, it was reported that Arizona Senator Ruben Gallego said as many as 16 members of his Democrat party in the chamber could vote to approve the stablecoin bill currently being deliberated by that body.

If passed, the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) would set a pack of rules and regulations governing such cryptocurrencies.

Dodging Dogecoin

Although I think Dogecoin has a decent shot at a brief rebound given that it's an enduringly popular meme coin, for me it's too unpredictably volatile as an investment to put money into. I don't think the trade war's going to end soon, either, and it feels like the crypto spotlight will continue to shine on stablecoins for a bit. I'd leave Dogecoin alone for now.

Should you invest $1,000 in Dogecoin right now?

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With the federal hiring freeze lifting in mid-July, the Trump administration has rolled out a controversial federal hiring plan that critics warn will politicize and likely slow down the process rather than increase government efficiency.

De-emphasizing degree requirements and banning DEI initiatives—as well as any census tracking of gender, race, ethnicity, or religion to assess the composition of government—the plan requires every new hire to submit essays explaining which executive orders or policy initiatives they will help advance.

These essays must be limited to 200 words and cannot be generated by a chatbot, the guidance noted. While some applicants may point to policies enacted by prior presidents under their guidance, the president appears to be seeking to ensure that only Trump supporters are hired and that anyone who becomes disillusioned with Trump is weeded out over time. In addition to asking for a show of loyalty during the interview process, all federal workers will also be continuously vetted and must agree to submit to "checks for post-appointment conduct that may impact their continued trustworthiness," the guidance noted, referencing required patriotism repeatedly.

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The loose regulatory nature of the cryptocurrency market has led to an influx of meme coins, cryptocurrencies that lack meaningful real-world utility but can attract investors due to their appeal as a joke, because they are affiliated with someone or something popular, or for some other superficial reason.

Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) is the original meme coin. It was created as a joke, but Dogecoin's price has risen by more than 50,000% since 2014. Those returns are no joke.

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It's been a volatile journey, though. Dogecoin is currently on a slide, having dropped to less than $0.20 after soaring to more than $0.46 in late 2024. With Bitcoin setting new highs recently, should investors buy Dogecoin at less than $0.25 and ride the train?

Here is what you need to know.

Image source: Getty Images.

Dogecoin has surpassed $0.25 several times before

Dogecoin was around for a while before its popularity exploded in 2021. The meme coin has a large and supportive community and is a fully functioning cryptocurrency -- meaning people can use it as a digital currency at the few places where it's accepted.

During the past five years, Dogecoin's price has surged to $0.25 or higher a number of times. However, it has struggled to stay there. Previous rallies have occurred during periods of high cryptocurrency optimism, such as 2020-2021, and immediately after the 2024 election, when investors cheered an incoming president who had campaigned on a pro-cryptocurrency message.

Remember, investor sentiment is crucial to Dogecoin's price because cryptocurrencies lack underlying earnings or tangible assets to support their value. Their prices depend on the market's willingness to pay more for tokens.

Three factors working against Dogecoin's long-term price potential

That willingness, or the demand for the cryptocurrency, stems from three key factors: utility, tokenomics, and competition.

Dogecoin has problems in all three areas, which could continue to work against it over time.

First, Dogecoin lacks significant utility. Its popularity has resulted in some adoption: For example, some investment firms hope to launch Dogecoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which is a step in the right direction, and some merchants will accept it as payment. Still, Dogecoin is used for trades, tips, and donations primarily within its community. Meme coins generally aren't intended for much else.

Second is Dogecoin's tokenomics. Many view Bitcoin as an anti-inflationary digital asset due to its increasing adoption and capped supply. But Dogecoin has an unlimited maximum supply, and miners earn about 10,000 tokens per minute. This ever-increasing supply has much the same effect on Dogecoin's price that share dilution has on a company's stock.

Third, there is competition from newer meme coins. Many investors invest small sums in meme coins for fun. They typically aren't a serious component of a portfolio. Dogecoin's name recognition helps it, but investors may opt for different meme coins when newer, hotter tokens go viral. Less investor interest means lower prices.

Should you buy Dogecoin at less than $0.25?

The main points of Dogecoin and other meme coins are to have fun and build community around your favorite tokens. So it's perfectly fine to buy Dogecoin today, as long you're not spending a meaningful amount of money or seriously expecting a profit.

Of course, Dogecoin could spike and go to $0.25 and beyond, just as it has before. And if you buy Dogecoin and it happens to make you money, then that's great! Just don't count on it.

Dogecoin, like other meme coins, should not be considered a bigger deal than it is. It's all about going in with the proper expectations.

Should you invest $1,000 in Dogecoin right now?

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Justin Pope has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) was founded as a joke by two friends in 2013 who used the famous "Doge" meme as inspiration. Little did they know, it would go on to reach a peak of $0.73 per token in 2021, which translated to an eye-popping market capitalization of almost $90 billion.

A lot of that value was created on the back of Elon Musk's support, which has been ongoing since 2019. In fact, Dogecoin's most recent rally was sparked by Musk's involvement in the Trump administration, where he temporarily ran an external government agency with a name that references the meme token.

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But Musk's time at the White House has officially come to an end, so investors might be wondering what to do next. Is Dogecoin still a buy, or is this a sure sign to run for the hills?

Image source: Getty Images.

A timeline of Musk's Dogecoin support

Between 2019 and 2021, Musk regularly shared Dogecoin-related memes on social media and participated in friendly banter with other enthusiasts. Investors started to think he had a plan to create real value for the meme token, and that speculation reached a fever pitch in the lead-up to his appearance on Saturday Night Live.

During the show on May 8, 2021, Musk participated in a Dogecoin-themed comedy skit, which ended with him calling the meme token a "hustle." While it was a light-hearted joke, investors started to realize that Musk had no concrete plans to create value outside of his support on social media, so Dogecoin peaked at $0.73 per token that very night.

It plunged over the next 12 months, losing more than 90% of its value by mid-2022. It stayed dormant during 2023 and for most of 2024, until the U.S. presidential election. Musk threw his cash and his influence behind Donald Trump, who campaigned on a series of pro-crypto policies, and Dogecoin soared (along with most cryptocurrencies) when Trump eventually won the presidency.

A short time later, Trump announced plans to appoint Musk to run an external government agency tasked with reducing America's national debt by slashing spending. Musk named the agency the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE for short, which was a clear reference to his favorite cryptocurrency. However, to this day, Dogecoin has played no actual role in the agency, so its post-election rally was purely speculative.

Musk's time at the White House has now come to an end. He was classified as a "special government employee," which means he can only work within the administration for 130 days per year -- and Jan. 20 (Trump's Inauguration Day) to May 30 was exactly 130 days.

Dogecoin has serious fundamental issues

Dogecoin has plummeted by 59% from its recent 52-week high, but Elon Musk's departure from the DOGE agency isn't the biggest reason. The meme token has struggled to find a use case in the real world, and if consumers, businesses, and investors don't have a tangible reason to own it, then it's impossible to create sustainable value.

According to Cryptwerk, just 2,096 businesses around the world accept Dogecoin as payment for goods and services. If consumers can't spend Dogecoin at their favorite stores, then they have no reason to buy it. Businesses probably won't warm up to the meme token anytime soon, because its extreme volatility would make cash-flow management a nightmare.

Dogecoin also has a supply issue. There are 149.5 billion tokens in circulation as of this writing, and although there is a cap on how many more can be "mined" each year, there is no end date. In other words, new tokens will enter the market until the end of time. I've never seen an investment-grade asset with an unlimited supply that rises in value over the long term.

It might be time to run for the hills

Dogecoin's post-election rally peaked at $0.47, which was well below its 2021 high of $0.73. That suggests investors were less willing to buy into the Musk-driven hype this time around. But the meme token is now trading at just $0.19, and there could still be plenty of room to fall if history is any guide.

Dogecoin bottomed at around $0.06 in 2022, which might be the level to watch. It implies there could be 68% downside from the current price, and with Musk now out of the White House and no improvements to the meme token's fundamentals, that might be the path of least resistance.

As a result, I think it might be time to abandon Dogecoin and run for the hills.

Should you invest $1,000 in Dogecoin right now?

Before you buy stock in Dogecoin, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Dogecoin wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Anthony Di Pizio has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

A federal judge has given Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees access to US Treasury payment systems as long as they meet training and vetting requirements but denied the Trump administration's motion to completely dissolve a preliminary injunction.

US District Judge Jeannette Vargas of the Southern District of New York is overseeing a case filed against President Trump by 19 states led by New York. In February, Vargas issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the Treasury Department from granting DOGE access to systems containing personally identifiable information or confidential financial information.

In April, Vargas allowed DOGE employee Ryan Wunderly to access the Treasury Department's Bureau of Fiscal Services (BFS) system, after government declarations said "that Wunderly has undergone the same vetting and security clearance process that applies to any other Treasury Department employee provided with access to BFS payment systems." In an order yesterday, Vargas ruled that four more employees can access the system.

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• Elon Musk has sat down for at least five interviews in recent days.
• He's criticized Trump's spending bill and said he's spent too much time on politics.
• Here's what to know about each interview Musk has given.

Elon Musk is talking to the media again.

After months of largely avoiding sit-down interviews as he devoted time to DOGE, the tech titan suddenly seems to be all over the place.

Across five recent and forthcoming interviews, Musk has reflected on the work of DOGE, offered some criticism of President Donald Trump's legislative agenda, and indicated he's trying to spend less time on politics and more time on his companies.

Here's what you should know about what he said in each interview.

Bloomberg: Musk says he's spending less on politics

Perhaps the biggest revelation from Musk's sit-down with Bloomberg at the Qatar Economic Forum last week is that he's no longer going to be spending big on politics, like he did in the 2024 election.

"I think I've done enough," Musk said. "If I see a reason to do political spending in the future, I will do it. I do not currently see a reason."

If the tech titan holds true to those comments, Republicans will be losing out on what could have been tens of millions of dollars in political spending. Last year, Musk spent nearly $300 million, mostly on Trump.

He also said that it's up to Trump and Congress to make the project of DOGE a success.

"The DOGE team has done incredible work, but the magnitude of the savings is proportionate to the support we get from Congress and from the executive branch of the government in general," Musk said.

CNBC: New Tesla announcements

Musk's CNBC interview, which also took place last Tuesday, was mostly about Tesla.

He said that within just a matter of months, there could be 1,000 of the company's robotaxis on the streets of Austin, Texas.

"We'll start with probably 10 for a week, then increase it to 20, 30, 40," Musk said. "It will probably be at 1,000 within a few months." He's previously said the ramp-up will be quick.

He also mentioned that he still planned to be in Washington on a weekly basis, even as he spends more time on his companies.

"My rough plan on the White House is to be there for a couple days every few weeks, and to be helpful where I can be helpful," Musk said.

Ars Technica: Musk says he's spent too much time on politics

Musk spoke with Ars Technica, a tech-focused publication, in an Q&A published on Tuesday.

Though he mostly talked about SpaceX, he also said he's been too involved in politics since wading into the 2024 presidential race last year.

"I think I probably did spend a bit too much time on politics," Musk told the outlet. "It's not like I left the companies. It was just relative time allocation that probably was a little too high on the government side, and I've reduced that significantly in recent weeks."

The Washington Post: Musk laments that DOGE has become a 'whipping boy'

In an interview with the Washington Post, also published on Tuesday, Musk said that the "federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realized" and that it's an "uphill battle trying to improve things" in Washington, DC.

He also lamented the political backlash that DOGE has generated, especially from Democrats.

"DOGE is just becoming the whipping boy for everything," he said. "So, like, something bad would happen anywhere, and we would get blamed for it even if we had nothing to do with it."

That backlash has extended to his companies, particularly Tesla.

"People were burning Teslas," Musk said. "Why would you do that? That's really uncool."

CBS: Not a fan of the 'big beautiful bill'

In an interview with CBS — a network that's currently in the midst of a legal battle with Trump — Musk criticized the "One Big Beautiful Bill," which is the centerpiece of the president's legislative agenda because it adds trillions to the deficit.

"I was like, disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing," Musk said. "I think a vote can be big, or it could be beautiful. I don't know if it could be both."

And that's just what we know from a clip that was released on Tuesday. The rest of the interview is set to air on Sunday, June 1.

• Defense Department civilians were asked to submit ideas to save money.
• The request marked the end of DOGE's five-bullet exercise every week.
• Employees were instructed to exclude classified info from their submissions.

Defense Department employees received an all-staff email asking them to submit ideas on how to "root out waste."

The request marked the end of the controversial five-bullet exercise, in which federal employees were asked by the Department of Government Efficiency to send five bullet points of their accomplishments every week.

The final email, seen by Business Insider, was sent last week by Jules Hurst III, the acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness.

Hurst thanked Pentagon staff for "submitting weekly achievements over the past couple of months," adding that the weekly emails had served as reminders for "the depth and breadth of the Department's mission."

The email said that to conclude DOGE's five-bullet exercise, which was introduced in February, "we need one last input from you."

It asked civilian staff to "please submit one idea that will improve the Department's efficiency or root out waste" by May 28.

"It can be big or small. It can be focused on a particular program or on larger Department operations," wrote Hurst. "I invite you to be creative."

Employees were instructed to "exclude classified or sensitive information" from their submissions.

The email stressed that employees "without email access due to leave, shift work, temporary duty, or other valid reasons must comply with 12 hours of regaining access" and asked the supervisors of warehouse and shipyard employees without regular office or email access to liaise "directly with their employees."

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has said that he hopes that DOGE, overseen by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, can bring "actual businesslike efficiency to government."

Mara Karlin, who previously served as the assistant secretary of defense for strategy, plans, and capabilities, wrote in a commentary for Foreign Affairs last month that running the Pentagon like a business could backfire.

She said the DoD has to consider risk "far more soberly and carefully than in the corporate world," because the risk factor in defense is "uniquely high."

The Trump administration has prioritized efforts to increase efficiency at the Defense Department, but it also abruptly fired the department's top inspector general, who was charged with finding waste, fraud and abuse.

The administration plans to shift as much as $50 billion from existing programs to new priorities.

Hegseth announced in April that the DoD would be scrapping billions of dollars worth of IT and consulting contracts, affecting companies such as Accenture and Deloitte.

Last week, Business Insider reported that the Pentagon's IT agency was facing a 10% cut to its civilian workforce.

Karlin said, "The Pentagon needs change, but effective reform will require appreciating the uniqueness of the organization. So far, the signs are not encouraging."

An outdated Meta AI model was apparently at the center of the Department of Government Efficiency's initial ploy to purge parts of the federal government.

Wired reviewed materials showing that affiliates of Elon Musk's DOGE working in the Office of Personnel Management "tested and used Meta’s Llama 2 model to review and classify responses from federal workers to the infamous 'Fork in the Road' email that was sent across the government in late January."

The "Fork in the Road" memo seemed to copy a memo that Musk sent to Twitter employees, giving federal workers the choice to be "loyal"—and accept the government's return-to-office policy—or else resign. At the time, it was rumored that DOGE was feeding government employee data into AI, and Wired confirmed that records indicate Llama 2 was used to sort through responses and see how many employees had resigned.

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) set a new all-time high today, topping $111,000 for the first time ever. After reaching a previous all-time high in December 2024, Bitcoin declined roughly 30%, leading many to believe the bull run that saw it nearly double from September through December was over. However, in the last month, Bitcoin is up nearly 50%.

As is common, many altcoins have followed suit, with Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) up more than 68% in a month and Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) up nearly 50% since April.

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This growth has been largely fueled by easing trade tensions with China, and more recently, a downgrade of U.S. debt and the advancement of the crypto-friendly GENIUS Act. Today's move is directly related to the U.S. House of Representatives vote to advance President Trump's tax bill and "driven by a mix of positive momentum, growing optimism around U.S. crypto regulation, and continued interest from institutional buyers," as James Butterfill, head of research for crypto-focused asset manager CoinShares, told CNBC.

GENIUS Act passes the Senate

The Senate advanced the GENIUS Act on a bipartisan 66-32 vote Monday. The bill would establish the first regulatory framework for stablecoins -- crypto tokens pegged to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar, which could greatly advance their adoption in mainstream finance. The move was big news across crypto markets, but Ethereum saw a particular boost, as many of the most prominent stablecoins operate on its blockchain.

The fact that the bill passed with bipartisan support -- 16 Democrats joined the majority of Republicans -- was taken as an especially positive sign that more crypto-friendly bills could be coming.

Institutional buy-in is growing

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase and a longtime crypto skeptic, announced earlier this week that the asset management firm will allow clients to purchase Bitcoin. While the company won't hold it itself, it marks a major milestone, given JPMorgan's influence and Dimon's years of opposition to Bitcoin.

This comes as Bitcoin ETFs have seen consistent inflows and steady growth. So far in May, only two days have seen more money flow out of them than in. Often using these ETFs, public companies have greatly expanded their Bitcoin ownership this year: Ownership of the cryptocurrency by public companies is up 31% this year alone.

Economic fears are driving investment

Today's move in particular appears driven by the advancement of Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill." The House voted to advance the massive bill that would see a significant increase in the federal government's revenue shortfall. While there are spending cuts, the massive tax cuts will amount to a $3.8 trillion addition to the national debt, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO). This has spooked Wall Street and sent bond yields higher, with the 30-year Treasury yield at its highest level since October 2023. Bond yields rise as faith in the health of the economy falls.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bitcoin has long been held by its proponents to be a "safe haven," an alternative to the U.S. dollar and more traditional assets that are tied to the health of the economy. This hasn't always borne out. However, that is exactly what appears to be happening today. Investors are moving money from traditional assets into Bitcoin as a hedge, believing that if the broader economy worsens, Bitcoin will not move down with it.

I think both Bitcoin and Ethereum are solid investments that can help diversify your portfolio and make it more resilient during downturns. However, they are still relatively speculative and carry a decent amount of risk. Dogecoin is a meme coin, and I would caution investors to stay away from it.

Should you invest $1,000 in Bitcoin right now?

Before you buy stock in Bitcoin, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Bitcoin wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $644,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $807,814!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 962% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 169% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025

JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Johnny Rice has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin, Ethereum, and JPMorgan Chase. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The Trump administration's steep staff cuts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) triggered shutdowns of several climate-related programs Thursday.

Perhaps most notably, the NOAA announced it would be shuttering the "billion-dollar weather and climate disasters" database for vague reasons. Since 1980, the database made it possible to track the growing costs of the nation's most devastating weather events, critically pooling various sources of private data that have long been less accessible to the public.

In that time, 403 weather and climate disasters in the US triggered more than $2.945 trillion in costs, and NOAA notes that's a conservative estimate. Considering that CNN noted the average number of disasters in the past five years jumped from nine annually to 24, shutting down the database could leave communities in the dark on costs of emerging threats. All the NOAA can likely say is to continue looking at the historic data to keep up with trends.

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The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has reportedly overhauled a historically wonky Department of Defense-designed tool that automates layoffs of federal workers.

Expected to expedite DOGE's already rushed efforts to shrink the government, the redesigned software could make it easier for DOGE to quickly dismantle the biggest agencies in a blink, sources familiar with the revamp told Reuters.

Developed more than two decades ago, AutoRIF (short for automated reductions in force) was deemed too "clunky" to use across government, sources told Reuters. In a 2003 audit, the DOD's Office of the Inspector General noted, for example, that "specialized reduction-in-force procedures needed for the National Guard technicians made the module impractical." Basically, each department needed to weigh its cuts differently to avoid gutting essential personnel. Despite several software updates since then, Wired reported, the tool remained subject to errors, sources told Reuters, requiring most federal agencies to continue conducting firings manually rather than risk work stoppages or other negative outcomes from sloppy firings.

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For more than two months, the Trump administration has been subject to a federal court order stopping it from cutting funding related to gender identity and the provision of gender-affirming care in response to President Donald Trump’s executive orders.

Lawyers for the federal government have repeatedly claimed in court filings that the administration has been complying with the order.

But new whistleblower records submitted in a lawsuit led by the Washington state attorney general appear to contradict the claim.

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The crypto market came to life on Thursday as investors continued to buy riskier assets like cryptocurrencies and growth stocks. The Federal Reserve's move to not change interest rates yesterday played a role, but so does the seeming idea that trade tensions are easing.

At 2:30 p.m. ET, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is up 5% over the past 24 hours, Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) has jumped 13.8%, and Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) is up 10.8%.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

Image source: Getty Images.

Trade deals, interest rates, and crypto

The biggest news of yesterday was the Federal Reserve keeping the fed funds rate at 4.25% to 4.5%, which was what the market expected. But President Trump is pushing for lower rates while tariffs are threatening inflation, which has made the market worried about the tension between the two.

As a sign that tariff tension may ease, President Trump announced a trade deal with the U.K. today, which is really more of a framework with details to be worked out later. The deal reduces some import tariffs on pharmaceuticals and automobiles while keeping the 10% tariff on all imports in place.

The deal isn't exactly earth-shattering and leaves a lot of details to be negotiated, but the market is forward looking so investors are wondering what the impact will be if more "deals" are announced soon. The Fed may soon start worrying less about tariff-induced inflation and look at the weakening economy, leaving the central bank to cut rates.

Blockchain developments continue

Despite the speculative nature of day-to-day trading on the blockchain, there has been some positive news for these cryptocurrencies as it relates to utility. Ethereum's Pectra upgrade is intended to provide more scalability for the blockchain, which is needed given the slow speed and high cost for using Ethereum.

Dogecoin got some positive news when DogeOS raised $6.9 million to build a Dogecoin app layer. Dogecoin is still a meme coin, but some developers want to give it more utility.

Bitcoin's role as the largest, most stable cryptocurrency remains despite its relatively few use cases. But that's why investors call it digital gold.

Where does crypto go from here?

The market's speculation has pushed crypto higher along with growth stocks, helped by a solid earnings season. But the tariffs announced in early April won't impact business until the second quarter, and empty shelves won't be seen at retailers for months.

This could be the kind of bounce that's unsustainable if the economy turns south, as companies and the government reduce staff. There were 105,441 layoffs in April, according to a report from Challenger, Gray, and Christmas, 63% higher than a year ago. About half of those cuts were from the government's DOGE initiative.

We have seen in previous recessions that there's a lag between an event and the economic impacts it causes. In March 2008, Bear Stearns collapsed, and the market wouldn't bottom for another year. There will be a multimonth lag between layoffs and tariffs and their ultimate economic impact.

I'm skeptical of this rally for that reason and think the market may already be getting out ahead of itself in 2025.

Should you invest $1,000 in Bitcoin right now?

Before you buy stock in Bitcoin, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Bitcoin wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $623,103!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $717,471!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 909% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 162% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of May 5, 2025

Travis Hoium has positions in Ethereum. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Elon Musk's companies could avoid over $2.3 billion in potential fines and other liabilities thanks to Musk's unusual government position as the head of DOGE, said a memo yesterday from the Democratic staff of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The estimate is said to include potential liability from federal investigations, litigation, and other regulatory actions.

"Since his appointment, Mr. Musk has taken a chainsaw to the federal government with no apparent regard for the law or for the people who depend on the programs and agencies he so blithely destroys... Mr. Musk's position may allow him to evade oversight, derail investigations, and make litigation disappear whenever he so chooses—on his terms and at his command," the 44-page memo said.

The subcommittee's investigation found that as of January 20, "Musk and his companies were subject to at least 65 actual or potential actions by 11 different federal agencies." The memo said the subcommittee "was able to estimate potential financial liabilities for 40 of the 65 actions by eight federal agencies," resulting in the $2.37 billion total.

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