Bitcoin hit a new all-time high early Friday after Tesla chief Elon Musk called the cryptocurrency “less dumb” than cash.

The price of the world’s biggest digital coin climbed to a record of $52,954.49 after Musk fired off a pair of tweets defending Tesla’s decision to buy $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin and explaining why the electric-car maker didn’t purchase Dogecoin, his favorite meme-inspired cryptocurrency.

But Zhao noted that Tesla decided to invest in bitcoin rather than a cult cryptocurrency that was created as a joke.

Musk latest bullish remarks about bitcoin came amid a growing perception that the digital currency offers protection from inflation

Tesla’s blockbuster bitcoin investment — which came with an announcement that the automaker would accept bitcoin as payment — was one of several recent signs that cryptocurrency is gaining traction in the mainstream business world