The cryptocurrency community quickly class different digital currencies based on their use cases. Coins and tokens initially designed with a clear use case are classified as digital assets of real value, while others are categorized as shitcoins or meme coins.
What is a Memecoin?
For clarity, a meme coin is a cryptocurrency created as a mere joke or based on memes. Usually, cryptocurrency investors are not supposed to be heavily invested in these types of crypto projects since they do not have any use case.
However, the massive surge in value recorded in the first-ever meme coin Dogecoin in 2020 has prompted several traders to throw large amounts of capital into digital currencies inspired by internet jokes.
The launch of Dogecoin in 2013 and its massive growth in popularity gave rise to the development of new sets of cryptocurrencies referred to as meme coins.
Shiba Inu (SHIB) is one of the cryptocurrencies launched as a experiment but labeled meme.
Shiba Inu History
The dog-themed cryptocurrency is a direct replica of Dogecoin and was immediately classed as a meme coin when it launched.
Launched in August 2020 by Shytoshi Kusama, Shiba Inu was referred to as the Dogecoin killer by the SHIBArmy, a title given to the cryptocurrency supporters.
Since there was no clear use case for the coin, the crypto community quickly added it to the memecoin list, with many believing that the asset class would eventually die a natural death soon.
Shiba Inu Community Rejects Memecoin Title
In contrast to the description of Shiba Inu as a memecoin, the cryptocurrency has transitioned from being a coin with no real use case into one of the most disruptive asset classes in the crypto market.
Interestingly, Shiba Inu (SHIB), the cryptocurrency initially started as a joke, has grown into a digital currency with real utility.
Following several developments for the crypto project, its community of vibrant enthusiasts has, on several occasions, rejected the meme coin title as the token is widely used in payments among several initiatives that have been unveiled for the project.
Five Reasons Why Shiba Inu Is Not a Memecoin
This section will take a deep dive into some of the factors that have seen Shiba Inu become more than just a meme coin into a cryptocurrency with stronger use cases.
- Shiba Inu Use as a Payment Method
With a solid community behind Shiba Inu, online merchants and physical stores have deemed it fit to add cryptocurrency as a payment method in a bid to boost sales. Following the support of Shiba Inu on popular cryptocurrency payment provider BitPay, SHIBArmy can now pay for goods in different online stores using SHIB on their BitPay app.
With the addition of SHIB as a payment method on BitPay, the Shiba Inu community can now use the cryptocurrency to purchase goods and services on Jeff Bezos’ Amazon, Shopify, Google Play, Uber, Hotels.com, AMC Theater, Newegg, as well as Travala.
BitPay’s support for Shiba Inu comes after the cryptocurrency’s growing supporters, and AMC Theater convinced the crypto payment provider to add the dog-themed token to its list of supported coins.
In an exciting development, Italian-based sandwich restaurant Welly’s announced that it would be accepting SHIB. Still, it took cryptocurrency adoption to a whole new level by rebranding its logo. The move prompted the SHIBArmy to refer to the restaurant as a SHIB Branded Food Chain.
2. Shiba Inu Decentralized Exchange
Like other popular crypto projects, Shiba Inu also has its decentralized exchange named ShibaSwap. The decentralized exchange was launched in July 2021 and allowed users to carry out similar activities permitted on other decentralized trading platforms like Uniswap, dYdX, PancakeSwap, etc. The exchange utilizes three primary tokens: SHIB, bone ShibaSwap (BONE), and Doge Killer (LEASH).
The three main features users can conduct on the exchange include:
Dig: This feature allows users to partake in liquidity mining in a bid to earn BONE tokens as rewards. Users can vote on important governance decisions, including what upgrades will be launched.
Bury: Burying tokens is similar to staking in the cryptocurrency space. When you stake your SHIB, LEASH, or BONE on ShibaSwap, you can earn APY rewards in BONE.
Swap: Users are allowed to exchange one cryptocurrency for another.
It is worth noting that other features can be conducted on ShibaSwap, including to “Woof your returns,” an initiative similar to crypto farming, and to buy and sell non-fungible tokens (more on this later).
3. Non-Fungible Token Ecosystem
Shiba Inu now has a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace. NFT is one of the hottest niches in the cryptocurrency industry at the moment, with billions of dollars being exchanged every month. Not planning to miss out on the major crypto trend, Shiba Inu has also launched its NFT marketplace, a platform that has become home to 10,000 unique Shiba Inu-generated NFTs known as SHIBOSHIS.
With Shiba Inu now offering NFTs, SHIBArmy can mint and trade various digital collectibles on the platform. Aside from ShibaSwap, interested traders can purchase their favorite SHIBOSHI on Ethereum-based OpenSea.
4. Upcoming Metaverse Project
This year, the Shiba Inu community was thrown into shock after the project’s team announced its metaverse project dubbed Shiberse. This initiative would give the SHIBArmy access to a digital world.
The announcement happens to be one of the continuous steps by Shiba Inu to increase its ecosystem. While there are tiny details about the initiative, the crypto project proceeded to unveil its metaverse land, a virtual real estate known as Shiba Lands, with LEASH holders tipped to become the first users to gain access to the digital property.
5. Shiba Inu Burning Program
The Shiba Inu community has embarked on a conscious effort to reduce the token’s total supply as much as they can. According to data on Coingecko, Shiba Inu has a total supply of 1 quadrillion. However, the community is rallying together to burn some SHIBs out of its total supply, and one of the ways to do this is by sending the cryptocurrency at intervals to an inferno wallet.
In 2020, the developers behind the Shiba Inu project gave Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin 50% of the total SHIB supply to ensure the cryptocurrency’s price stability.
Buterin proceeded to gift 50 trillion units of the token to the India COVID-19 relief fund and further sent 41% of the SHIBs he received as a gift to a dead wallet.
Steven Cooper, the founder of Big Entertainment, has also joined the SHIB burning party by raising funds through the sale of event tickets, etc., while using a portion of the company’s profit to buy and send Shiba Inu to a dead wallet.
At the time of writing, a total of 259 billion SHIBs have been burnt, with an additional 1 billion scheduled to go up in flames by next week.
Final Thoughts
Shiba Inu started as an experiment, and it has proven to have a series of use cases like other popular cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), and Cardano (ADA).
When the project eventually unveils all its plans for project this year, it is expected that the value of the SHIB will surge tremendously.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
