Dogecoin Market Cap Hits $1 Billion, to Its Creator's Dismay

Dogecoin, the parody coin named for an internet meme featuring a Shiba Inu dog, has broken off the leash.

Nearly forgotten since its heyday in 2014, over the past month the cryptocurrency's price has increased more than 400 percent, setting a new all-time high Thursday above $0.01.

This price surge pushed dogecoin's market capitalization above $1 billion, data from CoinMarketCap shows.

Yet while more than $101 million in trading volume was seen in dogecoin over the past 24 hours, the creator of the project is worried this is a sign of broader market excess.

"The fact that most conversations happening in the media and between peers focus on the investment potential is worrying, as it draws attention away from the underlying technology and goals this movement was based [on]," said Jackson Palmer, the founder of the cryptocurrency who left the team in 2015.