What Is Shiba Inu (SHIB) Coin?

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is what’s known as a “meme coin,” or a cryptocurrency based on a meme. It was inspired by Dogecoin (DOGE), the original meme coin created back in 2014, which uses the image of a Shiba Inu dog.

SHIB is intended to be an alternative to Dogecoin or a “Dogecoin killer.” Unlike DOGE, which has its own blockchain, SHIB runs on the Ethereum blockchain. One thing DOGE and SHIB both have in common, however, is that their supply is abundant. SHIB began with an initial circulating supply of one quadrillion coins. Curious to know more about trading Shiba Inu crypto? Keep reading.

How Does Shiba Inu (SHIB) Work?

What is Shiba Inu crypto, exactly, and how does it work compared to other cryptocurrencies? These days it’s important to know the origin story and mission of different types of crypto. With thousands of competitors in the crypto markets, the coins with certain features may end up having the most staying power.

Despite its dog-themed meme, SHIB offers more DeFi features than some meme coins. The driving philosophy behind Shiba Inu crypto was to create a project that would be fully controlled by its community. Shiba Inu also launched a decentralized exchange (DEX) in 2020 as well: ShibaSwap.

ShibaSwap enables users to “dig” (i.e. provide liquidity); “bury” or stake coins; as well as swapping tokens to get rewards (called “woof returns”).

The Shiba Inu ecosystem consists of three tokens:

Shiba Inu (SHIB). SHIB coin is an ERC-20 token (meaning it’s built on the Ethereum blockchain), and it powers the Shiba Inu ecosystem. A fixed supply of 1 quadrillion coins were minted at launch (a quadrillion is a number followed by 15 zeros).

A full 50% of the initial supply of 1 quadrillion SHIB was locked in a Uniswap SHIB/ETH liquidity pool. Uniswap is a decentralized exchange where users deposit asset pairs (like SHIB/ETH) that other investors can trade against in an automated market maker (AMM) system.

The other 50% was given to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. He later sold some of his tokens and donated the proceeds to an Indian Covid-19 relief fund. Buterin also burned 40% of the total supply of SHIB.

Leash (LEASH). The second token in the Shiba Inu ecosystem has a supply of only 107,646, far less than SHIB.

Bone (BONE). BONE is Shiba Inu’s governance token. It gives SHIB holders, also known as “the ShibArmy,” to cast their votes on proposed changes to the network. There are a total of 250 million Bone tokens.

In addition to the three tokens and ShibaSwap DEX listed above, there are other aspects of the Shiba Inu platform, including:

Shiba Inu Incubator, which aims to discover ways to nourish the creativity of artists and bring together those who create art and other types of creative content.

Shiboshi, NFTs available on the Ethereum blockchain. Each Shiboshi has its own unique traits.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Shiba Inu (SHIB)

Like most cryptocurrencies, Shiba Inu crypto has its pros and cons. For example:

Advantages

Rewards can be earned through staking, and all three Shiba Inu tokens can be staked. Staking means locking up your crypto in a wallet or on an exchange and the ability to validate transactions and earn rewards. Liquidity mining involves depositing crypto assets in return for governance privileges.

Because SHIB is the 14th most popular coin as of Feb. 23, 2022, and it has relatively high volume and liquidity, it’s also relatively easy to use as a medium of exchange when trading crypto.

Last, the SHIB coin has such a low price – it’s never been worth even one penny – it has the potential for substantial gains. (Of course, this volatility is also one of its disadvantages.)

Disadvantages

In addition to the potential for extreme price swings (a downside common to most forms of crypto), SHIB is not considered particularly innovative. For that reason, there is some skepticism about the coin’s longevity and the platform’s potential to evolve.

For example, Shiba Inu has very little real-world use and is accepted as a form of payment by only a few dozen global vendors. And as many have pointed out, there’s little in Shiba Inu’s structure (e.g. lower fees or faster transaction times) to make it stand out in a very crowded crypto field.

Advantages	Disadvantages
• Investors can earn rewards through staking or joining a liquidity pool.	• SHIB’s extremely low price and high volume may contribute to volatility.
• Potential for price spikes and profits	• Not considered innovative
• Easy to use as a medium of exchange, thanks to higher liquidity.	• Very little real-world use outside of trading.

Who Created Shiba Inu (SHIB)?

SHIB was created by an anonymous developer known as Ryoshi in August 2020. At the core of the Shiba Inu network’s philosophy, according to the founding white paper (or woof paper, as it’s called), is the following statement: “We are an experiment in decentralized spontaneous community building.

Ryoshi chose to establish Shiba Inu on the Ethereum blockchain because of its relative stability, security, and flexibility. Ethereum has developed a reputation for supporting the launch of many new coins.

Why Does Shiba Inu (SHIB) Have Value?

There are a couple of reasons why Shiba Inu crypto has value.

Limited Supply

Because the SHIB coin was launched in 2020 with a fixed 1 quadrillion supply, nearly 50% of which has already been burned or donated, that has kept the market price low (one SHIB coin is worth a fraction of a penny). The cap on the number of coins has also given the price somewhere to go, if demand should rise.

Rewards

To incentivize the use of different coins on the network, Shiba Inu has set up a system that can provide investors with passive income via rewards from staking (locking up their crypto) or depositing funds in a liquidity pool.

Price of Shiba Inu (SHIB)

The SHIB coin is the 14th largest crypto with a market capitalization of $16.05 billion, as of February 14, 2022. There are about 549 trillion SHIB coin in circulation. The price of Shiba Inu is $0.000029. At its peak, one SHIB token was worth $0.000081, but it has yet to crack the one-cent ceiling.

Like most meme coins, and many cryptocurrencies in general, the price of SHIB tends to be very volatile and often sees a sharp decline after increasing. The decline tends to happen even faster and with higher crypto trading volume than the rise.

The fact that a small number of holders possess a large amount of the total coins in circulation may play a role in this. When prices rise, the “whales” who got in early and hold a lot of tokens seek to cash out some of their gains.

Why Use Shiba Inu (SHIB)?

Meme coins like Shiba Inu crypto typically don’t have any special utility value. Their only real use case is as a medium of exchange. Users can send each other coins as a form of payment or as a gift. Dogecoin tipping was popular in the early days of DOGE, for example.

The main advantage of meme coins is that they typically have very low transaction fees. The drawback is they also tend to have some of the highest volatility imaginable.

SHIB, however, does support a few special projects. These include an NFT (non-fungible token) incubator and the development of a decentralized exchange called Shibaswap.

SHIB users may also be interested in staking (“burying”) their coins to earn a yield.

How Can I Buy Shiba Inu (SHIB)?

Those who already have accounts on exchanges that list SHIB simply need to place a buy order for their desired amount. Otherwise, the following steps are required:

•  Choose an exchange that trades SHIB, and set up an account.

•  Fund the account.

•  Set up a crypto wallet that supports SHIB coin.

•  On the exchange, select a trading pair (e.g. SHIB/ETH)

•  Place a buy order and start trading SHIB.

Creating an account on a crypto exchange often involves verifying your identity, which means you will need a copy of a government-issued ID. Accounts can be funded with cryptocurrency or fiat currency. Funding with fiat often involves additional verification and linking a bank account or debit/credit card.

How to Sell Shiba Inu (SHIB)

Selling SHIB would involve the same steps as buying. The main difference would be placing a sell order rather than a buy order.

Keep in mind that selling crypto is a taxable event. It can be helpful to keep a record of all trades, as this can make things easier during tax season. Important factors to note include:

•  Price paid

•  Price sold

•  Length of time the asset was held for

•  Fees involved

Does Shiba Inu (SHIB) Have Staking?

Shiba Inu is a proof-of-stake (PoS) coin and therefore can be staked. Users staking SHIB can expect to earn approximately 3% to 5%.

Crypto exchanges that currently allow for users to easily stake SHIB include Binance and Crypto.com, in addition to the ShibaSwap DEX itself.