With a market cap of about $7 billion, Shiba Inu (SHIB -1.44%) is the second-largest meme coin. Only Dogecoin, the original meme coin, has been more successful.
In its early days, Shiba Inu was a millionaire maker. If you had bought and held it for all of 2021, you would have seen your investment grow by 45,278,000%. Shiba Inu almost certainly won't deliver those kinds of returns again. But if you've been thinking of picking up any tokens, this could be a buying opportunity.
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Buying the dip on Shiba Inu
The cryptocurrency market as a whole has been performing well this year. Bitcoin is up 23% in 2025 (as of Aug. 6), Ethereum is up 8%, and XRP has increased by 44%. However, meme coins haven't shared in this success.
Since the start of the year, Shiba Inu has lost 43% and fallen out of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap. Dogecoin is down 36%, although it has managed to stay in the top 10. While it's possible that meme coins have lost their appeal, we've seen Shiba Inu bounce back before.
Last year, Shiba Inu jumped by over 370% from Feb. 26 until March 5, likely following in Bitcoin's success. The price fell over the next six months, but then rebounded again, especially around the presidential election. In November 2024, it increased by 39%.
Shiba Inu is a risky bet at any price. But you'll have better odds of making money if you buy low when interest in meme coins has plummeted, as it has currently.
A fun diversion, but not an investment
People seem to enjoy meme coins, and since Shiba Inu is one of the most popular, it could go on another bull run. That said, it doesn't have much (if any) fundamental value, and it could also just slowly fizzle out.
If you want to put a little cash in Shiba Inu, now is as good a time as any to do so. Keep your position very small, though, and only spend money you can afford to lose.
