Launched in 2020, Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) quickly became one of the most famous meme cryptocurrencies, second only to Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) – the 'older brother' featuring the Shiba Inu dog logo. SHIB's initial appearance was seen as a 'copycat' version of Dogecoin, but within a few years, this project has expanded to become its own blockchain ecosystem.

1. Start: An ERC-20 Token on Ethereum

Shiba Inu launched as an ERC-20 token, meaning it was built on the Ethereum blockchain and must comply with the ERC-20 standard. While this provides security and compatibility with many wallets and exchanges, it also means that SHIB is subject to high transaction fees and congestion on the Ethereum network.

2. Turning Point 2023: Launch of Shibarium

To address these limitations, in 2023, the development team announced Shibarium – a layer-2 blockchain solution operating on the Ethereum platform.

  • Reducing congestion and transaction fees: Shibarium allows for transactions to be processed off the Ethereum mainnet, making transactions faster and cheaper.

  • Token burning mechanism: A portion of transaction fees is used to burn SHIB, meaning it is permanently removed from circulation to reduce the inflation pressure of the token.

  • dApp development environment: Shibarium also opens up opportunities for developers to build decentralized applications (dApps) directly on Shiba Inu's own network.

3. A Journey of Price Volatility

As a meme coin, SHIB has a higher volatility than most other cryptocurrencies, particularly due to the influence of the social media community.

  • Starting price (2020): approximately $0.00000782.

  • Peak (October 2021): surged to $0.00006704, providing many small investors with huge profits.

  • Strong correction (2022): dropped sharply after the FOMO phase, reflecting the general trend of the crypto market.

  • Short-term recovery (March 2024): price surged strongly but could not maintain for long.

  • Current price (30/7/2025): $0.00001290 – still 65% higher than the starting price but less than the ~95% increase of the S&P 500 index during the same period.

4. What If You Invested $1,000 from the Beginning?

If you invested $1,000 in SHIB in August 2020 when it launched, you would now have about $1,650.

Although this figure is still a profit, it is not impressive compared to many traditional investment assets over the past 5 years, especially considering the extremely high volatility risk of meme coins.

5. Looking to the Future

Shiba Inu is no longer just a meme coin. With Shibarium, the token burning mechanism, and a large user community, SHIB is gradually positioning itself as a blockchain project with real-world applications. However, the future value of SHIB will depend heavily on:

  • The ability to scale the ecosystem and attract developers.

  • The effectiveness of the token burning mechanism.

  • Market sentiment in the cryptocurrency sector in general.

📌 Conclusion: Shiba Inu has undergone a tumultuous journey over the past 5 years. From a tiny meme token, SHIB has built its own foundation and loyal community. However, to become an attractive long-term investment, the project needs to prove it can generate real and sustainable value beyond social media hype.