Shiba Inu (SHIB) is a TokenTokenA digital asset created with a smart contract on another cryptocurrency's blockchain, rather than on a blockchain of its own. on the Ethereum network, launched in August 2020 by an anonymous creator who went by the name Ryoshi. The token is named after the Japanese dog breed that also features in Dogecoin's logo, and it counts as a MemecoinMemecoinA cryptocurrency born from an internet joke or meme, usually with little or no practical use, whose price rests almost entirely on hype..
How does SHIB work?
SHIB has no blockchain of its own. Instead it follows the ERC-20ERC-20A standard for tokens on the Ethereum network that lets every wallet and service receive and send them in the same way. standard on Ethereum. It started with a supply of one quadrillion SHIB (a thousand trillion). Half went to Vitalik Buterin, one of Ethereum's founders. In May 2021 he gave part of it to a relief fund in India and then burned more than 410 trillion. Burning tokens means sending them to an address from which nobody can ever move them.
No new SHIB can be created, so the total supplyTotal supplyHow many units of a cryptocurrency already exist, whether in circulation or still locked, minus any that have been destroyed. can only shrink. In October 2026 about 590 trillion remained.
The ecosystem
An ecosystem has grown up around SHIB, with the decentralised exchange ShibaSwap, the layer 2 networkLayer 2A system built on top of a blockchain such as Ethereum or Bitcoin to make transactions faster and cheaper than on the base network itself. Shibarium and the BONE, LEASH and TREAT tokens. BONE is a governance token that is also used to pay fees on Shibarium.
What to keep in mind
The price of SHIB depends heavily on buzz and has swungVolatilityHow much and how quickly the price of an asset moves up and down. enormously. It peaked in October 2021, and by summer 2023 it had fallen by more than 90%. Anyone can also create a fake token with the same name, so what counts is the token's contract address, not its name.
Everything in Myntkaup Learn is written and regularly reviewed by the Myntkaup editorial team. It is for education and is not investment advice. Editorial policy. Updated 18 October 2026.