Will Shiba Inu Deliver Another Rags-to-Riches Rally, or Has the Opportunity Already Passed?

One narrative that continues to circulate within the Shiba Inu community, despite SHIB’s struggles, is the belief that the token could still create overnight millionaires.

This belief traces back to the 2021 bull run, when SHIB surged from about $0.000000000056 to an all-time high of $0.00008845. During the rally, stories emerged of early investors attaining wealth, including a truck driver who reportedly turned a $650 investment into millions of dollars.

Shiba Inu Rag-to-Riches Narrative Resurfaces

In recent times, supporters have revived these stories, citing them as motivation for new investors to buy SHIB in hopes of replicating similar rags-to-riches outcomes.

While Shiba Inu ranked among the standout performers of the 2021 bull market after reaching its record high, the token has since fallen 91.78% from that peak and now trades around $0.000007269.

This steep decline has disappointed many holders, but some investors see it as a potential entry point ahead of what they hope could be Shiba Inu’s next major rally.

Is Another SHIB Rags-to-Riches Story Possible?

Notably, current market conditions suggest that Shiba Inu is unlikely to replicate the rags-to-riches scenario that once turned average investors into overnight millionaires.

No Repeat of the Buterin-Style Burn

A major catalyst behind Shiba Inu’s historic 2021 rally was the massive token burn by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. After receiving roughly half of SHIB’s total supply, about 500 trillion tokens, Buterin burned 410 trillion SHIB and donated the remainder to charitable organizations. That move drew global attention to the project and laid the foundation for SHIB’s explosive rally in the months that followed.

Today, however, Shiba Inu is unlikely to witness another burn of that magnitude. Most of SHIB’s vast supply now sits in the hands of individual holders, who have little incentive to destroy their own assets.

Although daily burn reports continue to appear, they remain too small to meaningfully reduce the circulating supply. In fact, since Buterin’s burn, the number of tokens in the dead wallet has only risen marginally to about 410.75 trillion. This implies the SHIB community has been unable to burn even 1 trillion since Buterin’s 2021 action.

Without another large-scale burn, the likelihood of a dramatic price surge capable of creating new millionaires remains low.

Low Adoption of Shiba Inu’s Ecosystem Projects

Meanwhile, Shiba Inu’s developers have repeatedly emphasized that token burns are not the sole driver of long-term growth. They argue that real utility and ecosystem expansion could fuel future rallies. Over time, SHIB has evolved from a simple meme token into an ecosystem featuring projects such as Shibarium and ShibaSwap.

Despite this progress, adoption has fallen short of expectations. Shibarium, for instance, once processed up to four million daily transactions in its early days but now handles only a few thousand. This sharp decline undermines the narrative that widespread use of Shiba Inu’s products will naturally translate into a strong and sustained rally.

Unfinished and Delayed Initiatives

In addition, several high-profile initiatives remain incomplete. The team has provided little to no updates on the privacy Layer-3 blockchain announced in April 2024. Similarly, the much-hyped metaverse project, once described as a potential game-changer, has yet to fully launch.

These delays weaken confidence in the project’s execution and may discourage large investors whose capital could otherwise drive renewed momentum in SHIB.

Growing Attention on Other Tokens

Moreover, focus within the Shiba Inu community appears increasingly divided. During SHIB’s early rise, developers and prominent community figures focused almost entirely on the token.

In recent times, several well-known figures have begun promoting other tokens outside SHIB. Notably, the @Shibtoken X account, widely perceived by users as the project’s official channel, recently promoted external projects such as Hachi Token.

Even though some developers dispute the account’s official status, its reputation alone gives such promotions the appearance of an endorsement, potentially diverting investor attention from SHIB and reducing the chances of a strong rally.

Signs of Disunity Within the Ecosystem

Internal tensions have further clouded Shiba Inu’s outlook. The September hack of the Shibarium Bridge intensified reports of discord among core contributors.

In the aftermath, developer Kaal Dhairya publicly criticized former team members for abandoning the project. At the same time, K9 Finance hinted it could move its liquid staking platform away from Shibarium if victims were not compensated.

In addition, Shiba Inu’s engineering manager announced his departure to pursue a new venture, fueling further speculation about internal fractures.

These developments present significant challenges for Shiba Inu. While the project retains a strong community and name recognition, the lack of major catalysts, uneven adoption, unfinished products, and internal tensions make it difficult to envision another rags-to-riches chapter unfolding anytime soon.