Will Shiba Inu's Rally Sustain Beyond Its Devoted Community?

Recent Catalysts Could Spark Short-Term Interest

The landscape for Shiba Inu appears to be shifting slightly. Two developments have emerged that might provide temporary momentum:

ETF Application Opens Institutional Doors: T. Rowe Price’s Active Crypto ETF filing (dated Oct. 22) includes Shiba Inu as an eligible holding. While this doesn’t guarantee inclusion, SEC approval could attract institutional capital and expand accessibility for traditional investors seeking meme coin exposure.

Derivatives Trading Launches: Starting Dec. 12, Coinbase Markets will enable U.S. traders to access perpetual futures contracts for Shiba Inu and select altcoins. Unlike traditional futures with fixed expiration dates, perpetuals offer traders unlimited holding periods and greater flexibility in positioning.

These catalysts alone won’t reverse the fundamental challenge: Shiba Inu has plummeted over 90% from its 2021 peak, and price recovery remains speculative at best.

The Community Paradox: Enough to Survive, Not to Thrive

Many dismiss meme coins for lacking utility—but this critique misses the core appeal. Projects like Shiba Inu aren’t built on technological breakthroughs; they’re constructed around accessibility, cultural relevance, and membership. The “Shib Army,” with 825,000 followers on X and an engaged Reddit presence, represents real staying power.

Network activity data tells an interesting story. At its 2021 zenith, Shiba Inu boasted over 100,000 active addresses on-chain. Today, that figure hovers between 3,000 and 4,500—suggesting investors are hodling despite losses exceeding 75% over the past year. For comparison, Chainlink (LINK)—a coin with genuine utility and a substantially larger market cap—maintains active addresses ranging from 2,500 to 10,000 throughout 2025.

The paradox is clear: community loyalty keeps Shiba Inu alive, but sentiment alone struggles to reverse price deterioration. The ShibaSwap decentralized exchange sees minimal adoption, and Shibarium’s Layer 2 solution faced a security breach in September—developments that barely register with the Shib Army’s conviction.

The Granddaddy of Crypto Still Offers Better Risk-Return

For investors seeking exposure to cryptocurrency, the “granddaddy long leg” of the sector—Bitcoin (BTC)—presents a more compelling narrative. Currently priced at $88.85K, Bitcoin dominates institutional portfolios and has systematized a pattern of erasing drawdowns before establishing new records. Unlike Shiba Inu, which may never revisit 2021 valuations, Bitcoin continues attracting corporate treasury allocations and positioning itself as digital gold.

The infrastructure layer deserves attention too. Ethereum (ETH) at $2.96K and Solana (SOL) at $122.86 represent the ecosystems where meme tokens proliferate. These smart-contract platforms serve as engines for stablecoins, decentralized applications, and token experiments. As blockchain adoption accelerates into mainstream commerce and finance, these foundational layers will likely appreciate alongside enterprise adoption—a dynamic absent from pure-play meme assets.

Shiba Inu’s Trajectory: Managed Decline

Shiba Inu won’t disappear overnight. The Shib Army’s organizational capacity ensures the project remains a top-100 cryptocurrency presence. However, realistic expectations matter. The coin will likely experience periodic rallies during bull cycles, followed by prolonged consolidation. Tokenomics and utility limitations suggest Shiba Inu becomes a speculative trading vehicle rather than an appreciating investment.

Dogecoin (DOGE), another enduring meme coin, maintains a $19.16B market cap—testament to how longevity and broader acceptance can sustain value. Yet even Dogecoin functions primarily as a trading vehicle rather than a wealth-creation engine.

The Verdict: Community Isn’t Enough

Shiba Inu’s survival is probable. Its price appreciation remains improbable. Investors with conviction should consider allocating capital toward cryptocurrencies with clearer pathways to value creation—whether that’s Bitcoin’s monetary properties, Ethereum’s expanding application layer, or Solana’s scaling efficiency. The meme coin sector thrives on volatility and narrative, making it suitable only for capital you can afford to lose entirely.