What makes $Shib so talked about and turning into one of the most held tokens in the cryptocurrency market? Is it the fact that it is still seen as meme (joke)? The fact that it is graduating into a stablecoin? That it is providing a solid foundation for the crypto to grow? Or is it simply just popularity? Let us take Shiba Inu, the dog-themed token, on a walk and discuss what is going on.
Shiba Inu Token History
Shiba Inu or $Shib is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies on the market today. You perhaps have heard a co-worker, friend or someone on social media talking about this token. $Shib has been out on the crypto market for a little over 2 years as it was initially released in August of 2020. Since then, the token has exploded onto the scene. Raking up an ROI of 800,682.31% (according to Crypto.com) to date. $Shib has branched out tremendously. Recently, they have partnered with Welly’s a fast-food company. They also have partnered with The Third Floor for metaverse development. This company is a long time partner with Marvel and bring visual/virtual advancements. Perhaps this dog is not just all bark but no bite. The team behind $Shib has started to grow the foundation for this crypto.
Current Shiba Inu Token Tech
The foundation of $Shib originally did not exist. It was a token that had an extremely high supply of 598 trillion tokens. Now, the team behind $Shib is growing its foundation. There has been a flurry of hiring, partnerships and networking. First the token announced a burn portal to help bring the circulating supply down. This seems like a bizarre tactic. One would willingly purchase coins then destroy them. Similar to taking a $20 out of the bank and burning it. In due time, this mechanic will help. Another development was the metaverse expansion. By adding a metaverse team, the token grew more valuable. Shibaswap was another piece to add backbone to $Shib. This is a decentralized exchange to enable deeper use of the $Shib ecosystem. Several merchants such as Gucci, Porsche and others accept it as payment. $Shib has also been accepted by Bitpay. Bitpay is third party service that customers can use to purchase goods from a merchant who accept Bitpay. So now what exactly is Shibarium?
Shibarium and its Parallels
A shiny new upgrade called Shibarium is next in line for the Shiba Inu token. This is a Layer-2/Blockchain upgrade to the $Shib ecosystem. $Shib runs on the Ethereum blockchain network as an ERC-20 token type. The upgrade of Layer-2 will allow the fees to be reduced significantly on $Shib usage. Think of it similar to Ethereum’s merge to proof of stake. It essentially is the same concept. As the $Shib token continues to grow with NFTs and the game coming, the upgrade is necessary. With the upgrade, it will become a deflationary token. Given that Ethereum is merging to deflationary with its upgrade, $Shib will copy it. The current economic evaluation of the Ethereum merger and Shib upgrade will make the tokens more favorable to for institutions. According to Bank of America, “Ethereum’s merge may increase institutional adoption”. It is safe to say the same for $Shib with Shibarium.
Bringing $Shib Home
As $Shib has continued to grow so does the blockchain and technology that encompasses it. Since its launch back in August 2020, the token has steadily been improved. In order for the token to survive to be a true stablecoin, it needs utility and better technology. Shibarium should grant this upgrade to Shiba Inu token. Only time will tell how the token will respond to Shibarium.
