A hamster became an an unlikely star in the cryptocurrency trading world, and is likely the “richest” rodent ever.
The furry critter, known as Mr Goxx, became an internet sensation after his owners decided to see whether he could outperform traders using a specially built trading cage.
His career in the digital currency trading began after two friends in Germany, a lecturer and a programmer, decided to see if they could prove that financial wins in the industry were random, by tracking his movements into certain areas to trigger market decisions.
Working from his “trading office”, which was attached to his cage, Mr Goxx – real name Max – gained thousands of viewers on a Twitch livestream, with fans able to watch him cycling through cryptocurrencies on his “intention wheel”.
He would then trigger decisions to “buy” or “sell” depending on which tunnel he chose to scuttle through after, BBC News reported.
Going through a tunnel automatically completed the trade, with the live stream showing market values shown on screen like a financial news channel.
And while Mr Goxx may not have amassed the kind of fortunes boasted by crypto‘s canniest investors, his returns were pretty impressive.
The pet’s career in finance lasted from June 12, 2021 to November 22, 2021. By that time his portfolio had grown by 19.7% with a profit of around 98 Euros (about £82.47), according to his owners.
This meant his career performance was nearly double the S&P 500 stock market index’s return of 10.9% over the same time period, Business Insider reported.
His investment nous even caught the attention of billionaire Elon Musk, who declared that the hamster “has mad skillz!!”
Mr Goxx’s “firm” Goxx Capital was not a real company, and in every tweet his owners stressed that his decisions should not be taken as investment advice, declaring it to be a “light-hearted side project”.
The beloved hamster died peacefully in his sleep in on November 24, 2021, prompting a flood of tributes from fans.
Speaking to the BBC, the owners offered a heartfelt message to their beloved pet, saying: “You proved to us, that the internet doesn’t necessarily have to be a toxic wasteland.
“We are absolutely overwhelmed with the uncountable and touching condolences which we’ve received across all channels.
“What we personally learned from this project has little to do with crypto,” they added.