There are many cryptocurrencies, altcoins, tokens, and assets on the market today. Shiba Inu, or SHIB, is a relatively recent addition, although one that has gained a tremendous following already. In addition, meme coins are prevalent again suddenly, primarily thanks to Dogecoin noting a steep price increase throughout 2021.
More specifically, Dogecoin saw an impressive rally in early 2021, although most of that momentum has evaporated again. Such unusually high gains bring more eyeballs to the cryptocurrency industry as people start to seek out “the next DOGE΅. In addition, investors show an increasing appetite for meme coins, allowing currencies such as Shiba Inu to benefit from that frenzy.
Position das the “Dogecoin Killer,” SHIB has seen tremendous price appreciation throughout 2021. Although it has yet to overtake Dogecoin in marker ap, the currency has come relatively close to doing so. More importantly, it is more than just a meme coin, as there is an entire ecosystem surrounding it.
The Shiba Inu Vision
It is crucial to understand Shiba Inu (SHIB) has no native blockchain. Instead, it is a project and token on the Ethereum blockchain using the Shiba Inu dog as its logo. Since its inception, SHIB has become an alternative to Dogecoin with the potential to overtake it in market capitalization. The token has use cases across various industry segments, including a decentralized exchange, staking support, and DeFi opportunities.
At its core, SHIB remains a meme coin with a dog theme, the Japanese Shiba Inu dog. More often than not, meme coins are launched as a joke and only serve speculative purposes. However, Shiba Inu, launched by Ryoshi, offers some utility Dogecoin has not been able to achieve. That may be because there are no developers for Dogecoin today, whereas Shiba Inu still has a successful team behind it.
Moreover, the Shiba Inu whitepaper – called woof paper – confirms this project is a social experiment. More specifically, it relies on decentralized autonomous community building and empowers the average person. That empowerment can come from price appreciation, utility, or whatever else the community decides on in the future.
Because SHIB is based on Ethereum, it is fully compatible with this broader ecosystem. In addition, the network is well-used and secured, allowing projects leveraging this technology to tap into a vast and growing network.
Three Primary Currencies
It may seem a bit confusing at first, but Shiba Inu’s ecosystem consists of three primary tokens. Every token serves a different purpose, although they all entwine when looking at the bigger picture.
- SHIB: As the main currency of Shiba Inu, SHIB has a total supply of 1 quadrillion. tokens. However, half of those are locked in liquidity on Uniswap, with the remainder sent to Vitalik Buterin. Vitalik sold off a portion of the tokens and donated them to charity while sending the rest to an unspendable address. However, it is far from scarce, a smart solution that reduces the token’s total supply by a significant margin.
- Leash (LEASH): The secondary token in the Shiba Inu ecosystem with a supply of 107,646 tokens. It served as a rebase token pegged to the value of DOGE at first, but that is no longer the case today. Its low supply can be appealing to the right investor, however.
- Bone (BONE): The third token in his ecosystem is BONE, with a supply of 250,000,000 tokens. BONE offers governance rights to token holders to vote on proposals for the Shiba Inu ecosystem. BONE will play a crucial role in DeFi moving forward, although no details have been announced yet.
The Broader Shiba Inu Ecosystem
We mentioned earlier how Shiba Inu (SHIB) is not a meme project but focuses on utility. That becomes apparent when looking at the broader ecosystem and the services it encompasses.
- ShibaSwap: The ecosystem’s decentralized exchange, letting users swap value between various currencies and tokens.
- Shiba Inu Incubator: A worthwhile tool to help artists maximize their creativity outside of traditional artforms. Ultimately, the Incubator will spawn a new generation of artists and content creators.
- Shiboshi: Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) with a Shiba Inu theme. The Shiboshi collection resides on the Etheruem blockchain, and every NFT has different traits.
Is SHIB Money Or Speculation?
The opinions will always remain divided on that front. Although Shiba Inu provides utility, most of its value comes from speculation. However, every SHIB token has a value that can be converted to and from money, making it a rather interesting option. It is one of the best-performing crypto assets of 2021 despite facing multiple setbacks.
One has to wonder where the price excitement comes from for this currency. To date, new exchange listings and the release of Shibosdhi NFTs are the main reasons for excitement. However, neither of those bring direct value to SHIB, making these uptrends rather short-lived. Sustaining the current momentum can prove difficult moving forward unless the team and community come up with new and exciting ideas.
Finding The Right Wallet
Whether it is SHIB or any other Ethereum token, it is essential to find the right wallet. The current value of Shiba Inu requires a more security-oriented approach to storing this currency. making hardware wallets a good choice. However, there are many other options in the list below:
- Ledger Nano X
- Trezor
- Trust Wallet
- MetaMask
- Guarda Wallet
- Lumi Wallet
- Coinomi
- Ellipal Titan
Closing Thoughts
The launch and success of Shiba Inu have taken many people by surprise. While many assumed it would be another meme coin, the currency has achieved a few significant milestones. Moreover, its market capitalization is not far removed from Dogecoin’s, fueling the ongoing “rally” between these two currencies.
Whether SHIB can flip DOGE remains uncertain, although the former has a lot more trading volume than the meme coin “leader”.