Shiba Inu launched in August 2020 under the pseudonym 'Ryoshi', as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum explicitly styled as a 'Dogecoin killer' and built around meme culture from day one rather than a stated technical differentiator. It has no blockchain or consensus mechanism of its own — it is a token secured entirely by Ethereum's underlying security — though its ecosystem has since expanded to include a companion layer-2 network, Shibarium.
Category
meme
Consensus mechanism
—
Launched
2020
Token design and the ecosystem around it
SHIB's entire supply was minted at launch as an ERC-20 token, with no ongoing protocol-level mining or staking issuance the way a base-layer chain has. A large portion of the initial supply was reportedly sent to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who subsequently burned the majority of it and donated a portion to charity — an event widely cited in Shiba Inu's early history and one that materially reduced total circulating supply from its original mint.
The project has since built out an ecosystem beyond the original token, including a decentralised exchange (ShibaSwap), companion tokens (such as LEASH and BONE), and Shibarium, an Ethereum layer-2 that BONE is used to secure and pay fees on — expanding Shiba Inu from a single meme token into a small multi-product ecosystem.
Tokenomics
| circulating-supply | — |
|---|---|
| max-supply | — |
| issuance-model | Fixed total minted at the 2020 launch as an ERC-20 token; no further protocol issuance, though large portions have since been burned or locked |
Last verified: 8 July 2026. before you rely on any figure — live circulating supply and market cap are never published here; check a live tracker.
Risks & criticisms
- As a meme-driven asset with no protocol-level utility differentiator, SHIB's price history has shown some of the highest volatility in the sector, closely tied to social-media sentiment.
- Because it is an ERC-20 token rather than its own chain, its security depends entirely on Ethereum's base-layer security, while its own smart contracts (and those of ShibaSwap/Shibarium) carry independent smart-contract risk.
- Large historical supply concentration events (including the Buterin burn) are a distinctive part of its history worth understanding before assessing current circulating-supply figures.
Where to buy
Related buying guide
→ Shiba Inu — related buying guideFrequently asked questions
Is Shiba Inu its own blockchain?
No — SHIB is an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, secured by Ethereum's own consensus. Its ecosystem has since added Shibarium, a separate layer-2 network, but SHIB itself has no blockchain of its own.
What happened to the SHIB sent to Vitalik Buterin?
A large portion of the initial supply was sent to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin at launch; he subsequently burned the majority of it and donated a portion to charitable causes, materially reducing circulating supply from the original mint.
What is Shibarium?
An Ethereum layer-2 network built by the Shiba Inu ecosystem, using the companion BONE token for fees and governance, separate from the original SHIB token.