Shiba Inu (SHIB +1.18%) and Dogecoin (DOGE +1.16%) used to be similarly valued cryptocurrencies. But Shiba Inu has been underperforming its rival meme coin over the past year, which appears to have gotten a boost from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) agency Elon Musk is behind -- its acronym is the same as the symbol for Dogecoin.
Given its more modest valuation, however, Shiba Inu's coin may be in a more favorable position to rally from here on out, relative to its rival. But can it catch up to Dogecoin?
CRYPTO: SHIB
Key Data Points
Could a recent Shibarium milestone trigger a rally?
Shiba Inu launched its Layer-2 blockchain, Shibarium, in August 2023, which was built to improve and enhance the processing of transactions. Recently, the Shibarium hit the 1 billion mark in transactions, which is a great sign of its use and adoption in the crypto community. Reaching the milestone can help show crypto investors that Shiba is more than just a meme coin, and that it can have real-world use cases.
While there hasn't been a surge in Shiba Inu's value on this development, the crypto market as a whole has been struggling in recent weeks due to concerns about the economy due to tariffs and trade wars impacting countries all over the world. As of Monday, leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC +1.47%) was down more than 15% since the start of the year, which pales in comparison to Dogecoin's 53% crash and Shiba's 46% decline.
What could turn things around for Shiba?
If the Shibarium's recent milestone isn't enough to spark a rally, it may be hard to see anything else that might at this point. But given Shiba's relatively low valuation -- its market cap of $6.7 billion is far below Dogecoin at $22.1 billion -- that could make it a more attractive buy, should enthusiasm for the crypto market pick up again.
Dogecoin has been the preferred meme stock of late, but if there's less news around the DOGE agency and with Musk stepping away from his role with the government in the near future, that could put less of a spotlight on Dogecoin. Without that, Shiba Inu and its lower valuation could make for a more compelling coin to buy.
And the Shibarium's milestone could still prove to be a positive catalyst; it unfortunately happened at a time when many investors have soured on the crypto markets, at least temporarily. If it took place amid more excitement, the result may have been much more positive.
Can Shiba Inu catch up to Dogecoin this year?
Things can change quickly in the crypto world. There was initially a lot of hope and excitement that President Donald Trump would enact crypto-friendly policies that could give the crypto markets a big boost. Instead, things have gone sideways in recent months, with Trump launching his own meme coin. This sparked outrage in the crypto community, which believed that the new coin would undermine the industry's seriousness and legitimacy.
The good news is when things change, they can change rapidly in crypto. Shiba has been struggling badly this year, far more than Bitcoin, but it may be well positioned to rally should enthusiasm in the crypto market return at some point this year, due to its lower valuation and the recent Shibarium milestone.
However, investors should be careful not to assume it can catch up to Dogecoin, or that it can even deliver positive returns. If economic conditions don't improve and investors aren't feeling great about the economy, there may not be much excitement surrounding crypto. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile investments to hang on to, and Shiba is by no means a slam-dunk buy at this point. While it may catch up to Dogecoin at some point, I wouldn't expect that to be anytime soon.
