Key takeaways
- Shiba Inu (SHIB) is a token on the Ethereum network, launched in August 2020 by an anonymous creator known as Ryoshi. It counts as a memecoin.
- SHIB started with a supply of one quadrillion tokens. Half went to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who burned most of his share in May 2021.
- A whole ecosystem has grown up around SHIB, with the ShibaSwap exchange, the Shibarium layer 2 network and the BONE, LEASH and TREAT tokens.
- Its price depends heavily on buzz and mood, and it has swung enormously.
Contents
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 networkEthereumAn open blockchain that can run applications and smart contracts, with its own cryptocurrency called ether (ETH). that appeared in August 2020, named after the Japanese dog breed that also features in Dogecoin's logo. SHIB 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., a cryptocurrency born from an internet joke, but a whole ecosystem has grown up around it, with its own exchange, its own network and more tokens.
This article explains who created SHIB, how the token works and what the risks are.
Who created Shiba Inu?
Its creator went by the name Ryoshi and has never been publicly identified. Ryoshi described SHIB as an experiment in building a community without central control, and it was inspired by Dogecoin.
Instead of building its own blockchain, SHIB was issued as an ERC-20ERC-20A standard for tokens on the Ethereum network that lets every wallet and service receive and send them in the same way. token on Ethereum. It started with a supply of one quadrillion SHIB, a 1 followed by fifteen zeros (one quadrillion is a thousand trillion).
Half was placed in a liquidity poolLiquidity poolA shared pot of tokens held in a smart contract, which people trade against on decentralised exchanges. Those who fund it earn a share of the fees. on the decentralised exchange Uniswap, a fund that lets people buy and sell the token. The other half was sent to the wallet of Vitalik Buterin, one of Ethereum's founders. That decision would lead to the most famous event in SHIB's history.
What is Shiba Inu used for?
At first, SHIB was little more than a joke. Since then its community, which calls itself the Shib Army, has built an ecosystem around the token. According to the project's documentation, its main parts in October 2026 are:
- ShibaSwap. A decentralised exchangeDecentralised exchange (DEX)An exchange run by smart contracts, where people swap crypto straight from their own wallets with no company in the middle. on Ethereum and Shibarium where people swap tokens without a middleman. It runs on an automated market makerAutomated market maker (AMM)A smart contract that prices tokens on a decentralised exchange with a fixed formula, based on how much of each token sits in the pool. (AMM).
- Shibarium. A 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. on top of Ethereum that went live in 2023. Transactions there are faster and cheaper than on Ethereum itself. The network uses proof of stakeProof of stakeA consensus method where crypto is locked up as a stake for the right to create blocks, and anyone who cheats can lose part of that stake..
- BONE. The ecosystem's governance tokenGovernance tokenA token that gives voting rights over a DeFi service's rules and treasury. It is not a share and gives no ownership stake or right to dividends.. Fees on Shibarium are paid in BONE, and the network's validatorsValidatorA participant on a proof-of-stake network who locks up their own crypto as a stake to create and check blocks in return for rewards. stake BONE as a deposit.
- LEASH and TREAT. LEASH is a token with a very limited supply, and TREAT is a rewards token.
- Shib DAO. Token holders can vote on the ecosystem's affairs through a DAODAOAn organisation run by rules in smart contracts, where token holders vote on decisions instead of a board or chief executive., a kind of organisation run by votes on a blockchain.
In October 2026, more than 1.6 million addresses held SHIB on the Ethereum network. For many, taking part is about the community and the fun, not just the hope of a profit.
How does Shiba Inu work?
SHIB has no blockchain of its own. The token is a smart contractSmart contractA program that runs on a blockchain and automatically carries out what it was written to do once certain conditions are met. on Ethereum that keeps track of who owns how much. When you send SHIB from your own wallet, you therefore pay the fee, GasGasThe unit that measures the computing work a transaction or smart contract needs on Ethereum, which sets how high the network fee is., in ether.
Vitalik Buterin's burn
In May 2021, Vitalik Buterin still held half of SHIB's entire supply. First he gave 50 trillion SHIB, then worth about USD 1.2 billion, to a COVID-19 relief fund in India. A few days later he burned 90% of what was left, more than 410 trillion SHIB. He said he didn't want the power that came with such a large holding and planned to give the rest to charity.
Burning tokens means sending them to a wallet address for which nobody holds the private key. The tokens are still recorded in the smart contract's ledger, but nobody can ever move them. It is like locking banknotes in a safe and throwing the key into the sea.
According to the block explorerBlock explorerA website where anyone can look up transactions, wallet addresses and blocks on a blockchain. Etherscan, just over 41% of SHIB's original supply sits at the address Vitalik sent to. Others have burned SHIB since, but on a much smaller scale. About 590 trillion SHIB remain.
No new SHIB can ever be created, because the smart contract has no way to do 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 therefore only shrink. That is the core of SHIB's TokenomicsTokenomicsThe rules for a cryptocurrency's or token's supply, issuance and distribution, and what it is used for., the rules that govern its supply.
What are the risks?
SHIB has a large community and an ecosystem in real use. Even so, its price depends heavily on buzz and mood, as with other memecoins:
- Huge price swingsVolatilityHow much and how quickly the price of an asset moves up and down.. The price of SHIB peaked in October 2021. By summer 2023 it had fallen more than 90% from that peak.
- Risks in the ecosystem. In September 2025 an attacker targeted the BridgeBridgeA service that moves crypto or tokens between two blockchain networks, usually by locking the asset on one network and issuing an equivalent on the other. between Ethereum and Shibarium. They used a flash loanFlash loanA loan with no collateral that is borrowed and repaid within a single blockchain transaction. If it isn't repaid, the whole transaction is undone., an instant loan repaid within the same transaction, to get hold of a large amount of BONE and thereby gained a majority of the votes among the network's validators. About USD 4 million in crypto was lost.
- An anonymous creator. Nobody knows who Ryoshi is, and it can be hard to tell who is responsible if something goes wrong.
- Fake tokens. Anyone can create an ERC-20 token called SHIB. What counts is the token's contract address, not its name.
Shiba Inu at Myntkaup
At Myntkaup you can buy, sell and hold SHIB. You can also deposit SHIB and withdraw it to your own crypto wallet on the Ethereum network (ERC-20).
Choose the Ethereum network when you send SHIB to or from Myntkaup. The same token can exist on more than one networkBlockchain networkThe blockchain a cryptocurrency or token is recorded and sent on, such as the Bitcoin network or the Ethereum network., and a transfer on the wrong network can be lost. The article How to send crypto to another wallet covers what to check. You can see the current price in krónur on the Shiba Inu price page.
Frequently asked questions
Why does one SHIB cost only a fraction of a króna?
Because there are so many of them, about 590 trillion. The price of a single unit therefore says little on its own. What matters is the total value, the token's market capitalisation. Read What is market capitalisation?
Is SHIB the same as Dogecoin?
No. Dogecoin has had its own blockchain since 2013 and uses proof of work, while SHIB is a token on the Ethereum network from 2020. New DOGE are created all the time, but the supply of SHIB can only shrink. Read more in What is Dogecoin?
Closing thoughts
Shiba Inu began as a joke inspired by Dogecoin but has grown into an ecosystem with its own exchange, its own network and a large community. The token itself is a simple ERC-20 token on Ethereum, and the most famous event in its history is Vitalik Buterin burning over 40% of its supply.
Its price is still driven mainly by buzz, though, and has swung enormously. Learn about the risks before you make any decision.
