Shiba Inu (SHIB) launched August 2020 by pseudonymous creator "Ryoshi" with virtually no announcement and no presale. Positioned as a "Dogecoin killer," SHIB entered circulation with one quadrillion tokens a supply designed to keep individual token prices microscopically low and psychologically accessible from unit bias.

SHIB has traveled one of the most dramatic price journeys in altcoin history which is why SHIB is a coin that might still be worth trading from fractions of a cent to a $54 billion market cap peak in October 27, 2021, then crashing 93.5% before stabilizing as the #24 ranked token with $4.91B market cap in December 5, 2025.

SHIB Origins (August–December 2020)

Ryoshi placed 50% of the token supply into Uniswap liquidity pools and sent the remaining 50% to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s wallet. What initially appeared symbolic took on real significance in May 2021, when Buterin burned 410 trillion tokens, permanently removing roughly 41% of the total supply.

First Major SHIB Rally: The Vitalik Burn (May 2021)

• Key Event: Vitalik Buterin burns 410 trillion SHIB 

• Peak Price: $0.00003791 (May 10, 2021)

Vitalik Buterin later:

• Donated ~50 trillion SHIB: Contributed over $1 billion (at the time) to India’s COVID-Crypto Relief Fund.

• Burned ~410 trillion SHIB: Sent to a dead wallet, permanently removing about 41% of total supply.

This in action:

• Created a massive deflationary SHIB event

• Generated global headlines

• Demonstrated that even Ethereum's co-founder acknowledged SHIB existence

Key Lesson: Arguably external catalysts matter more than fundamentals for meme tokens. The Vitalik burn became SHIB's origin story.

All-Time High: The October 2021 Euphoria

All-Time High: $0.00008845 (October 27, 2021)
Market Cap at ATH: ~$54billion (briefly entered top 10 cryptos)
Rally Magnitude: 85,000,000%+ from launch
Duration: Multi-month sustained rally from July through October

SHIB Market Cap

The Perfect Storm Behind SHIB’s All-Time High

SHIB’s run to its all-time high was a sustained grind driven by multiple reinforcing forces that aligned at the same time. These include:

1. Exchange Listings

• Coinbase listed SHIB in September 2021

• Binance, Kraken, Crypto.com, and others followed

• Each listing brought new liquidity and buying pressure

2. Social Media Frenzy

• #ShibArmy trended globally on Twitter or X for weeks

• Elon Musk's ambiguous X posts about Shiba Inu (the dog breed) triggered speculation

3. Broader Bitcoin and Altcoin Bull Market

• Bitcoin approached $69k on November 15, 2021

• Altcoins were exploding across the board

• Risk appetite was at all-time highs

4. Ecosystem Expansion

• ShibaSwap DEX launched in July 2021

• BONE and LEASH tokens added utility narrative

• NFT announcements created additional hype

The Long Bear Market (November 2021 - June 2023)

Bottom Price: $0.00000574 (June 5, 2023)
Drawdown from ATH: -93.5%
Duration: 24+ months of sustained downtrend

Analyzing SHIB RSI: Remains Below 50, Signaling Ongoing Bear Market Structure

SHIB’s weekly RSI on 14 January, 2026, sits near 40 , firmly below the critical 50 midpoint that separates bull and bear momentum. This positioning signals continued seller control, with price potentially grinding lower under sustained bearish pressure. Throughout 2024–2025, RSI has repeatedly failed at the 50 level, confirming it as a strong resistance zone.

SHIB Price and RSI

Historically, SHIB shows extreme momentum asymmetry:

• Bear phases: 12–18+ months with RSI stuck below 50

• Bull phases: explosive 2–8 week runs with RSI rapidly spiking above 70

The 2022–2023 cycle saw RSI suppressed below 50 for over 18 months, while the 2021 and March 2024 rallies demonstrated how quickly SHIB can flip from depressed momentum to parabolic acceleration. Current RSI conditions suggest further downside or prolonged consolidation before any structural reversal, but a sustained move above 50 would mark a clear shift into a bullish environment for SHIB.

What to Expect: Prolonged Consolidation Before a Fast Breakout

The typical transition unfolds in three stages:

1. Initial RSI 50 reclaim (often rejected)

2. Sustained multi-week hold above 50, signaling structural shift

3. Rapid RSI expansion to 60–90+, marking parabolic price movement reflected in its RSI momentum

RSI 50: SHIB’s Structural Control Line

The RSI 50 level acts as SHIB’s dividing line between bull and bear posture for traders:

• Below 50: bear-controlled grind, weak rallies, selling into resistance.

• Above 50: bull-controlled momentum, trend expansion, sustained advance.

What Keeps SHIB Alive in 2026

SHIB participating in the bull run of 2021 and surviving the bear market of 2022 is a test of infrastructure and community resilience. Other indicators that should maintain SHIBs relevance includes:

• Deep exchange liquidity: SHIB remained listed on all major platforms

• Persistent community: Core holders continued development efforts

• Shibarium L2 development: The team began building a Layer-2 solution

• Comparative strength: Many memecoins from 2021 went to zero; SHIB survived

Closing 2025: SHIB Market Snapshot Quarter Four

Current Price: ~$0.0000085 (as of December 2025)
Market Cap: ~$4.9 billion
Status: Established but volatile asset with clear support/resistance zones

As of December 5, 2025 the start of research for this article, SHIB has developed from a pure meme token into a more actively tradable asset, ranking as the second-largest memecoin by market capitalization, behind only Dogecoin.

Key Price Milestones Summary

Building a Trading Strategy for SHIB

Trading SHIB effectively requires a plan. Without a predefined plan, volatility turns into emotional decision-making rather than opportunity. A non-leverage, rule-based approach helps traders identify deep discount zones, define risk before entry, and take profits methodically during momentum phases. 

The Coinjuice How to Trade Without Leverage eBook outlines this exact framework, developed for highly volatile assets like SHIB. Be sure to grab your copy and subscribe to Coinjuice PRO to keep track of SHIB.

SHIB vs DOGE vs PEPE: Where Does Shiba Inu Stand in the $28B Meme Coin Market?

Despite SHIB’s size and ecosystem ambitions, it has not been the stronger long-term buy compared to either DOGE or PEPE.

Against Dogecoin, SHIB has consistently underperformed on a relative basis. DOGE’s simpler narrative, deeper liquidity, and sustained market recognition have allowed it to retain long-term dominance, while SHIB has struggled to convert ecosystem development into durable relative strength.

SHIB vs DOGE chart

Against PEPE, in the chart below, the contrast is the same as above. While SHIB is roughly 1.8× larger by market capitalization, as at January 14, 2026, PEPE has delivered significantly higher trading activity and stronger momentum cycles. PEPE’s price action versus SHIB reflects how SHIB has remained range-bound, since May 2024, showing prolonged periods of consolidation and weaker relative performance since 2023.

SHIB vs PEPE chart

In both comparisons above, SHIB sits in an uncomfortable middle ground: larger and slower than PEPE, yet less liquid and less dominant than DOGE.

The charts reflect this clearly. SHIB’s relative performance has failed to outperform DOGE over the long run, while also lagging PEPE since 2023. Which means market cap size for SHIB alone has not translated into superior returns.

Conclusion

SHIB's journey from fractions of a cent to $0.000088 and back down to current levels tells a clear story: meme coins are vehicles of collective speculation, not stores of value.

The price history shows:

• Large rallies are possible but rare

• Bear markets are brutal and long

• Survival requires infrastructure and community

• Technical patterns repeat because traders remember past levels