3 Things You Must Know about the Shiba Inu Cryptocurrency

Since the launch of Bitcoin, the first-ever decentralized digital currency, in 2009, the cryptocurrency market has grown dramatically. There are now more than 7,000 cryptocurrencies with a combined market cap of more than $3.3 trillion (as of November 8, 2021). This was a record, according to CoinGecko.

The launch of Bitcoin-linked Exchange Traded Funds in October, along with vocal support from notable crypto proponents like Elon Musk, helped fuel the recent upsurge in combined cryptocurrency market cap. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, among others, have also become more of a trusted commodity among investors despite periods of volatility. Conversely, meme coins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu are attracting younger investors and inspiring high trading frequencies. Read on to learn more about Shiba Inu.

1. 1.    The Cryptocurrency Was Inspired by Popular Meme

The Shiba Inu cryptocurrency traces its roots back to a 2010 photo of the Shiba Inu rescue dog Kabosu. A picture of the dog began circulating on the Internet that year after the owner started blogging about the rescue animal. In 2013 a Reddit user posted a photo of the dog with a caption that inspired the “doge” meme and, ultimately, Dogecoin, which is among the top 10 cryptocurrencies based on market cap.

Shiba Inu, the cryptocurrency also inspired by the photo of the dog, is not far behind Dogecoin in terms of market cap. Advertised on its website as “DOGECOIN KILLER,” Shiba Inu was launched in August 2020 by an anonymous figure under the pseudonym “Ryoshi.” The token is based on Ethereum and is one of several dog-themed cryptocurrencies, which includes Baby Dogecoin, Alaska Inu, and Alaskan Malamute Token.

1. 1.    Its Trading Volume Is Greater Than Bitcoin

Despite its volatility, Shiba Inu has been viewed favorably among many young investors, who feel they missed out on the potential of substantial earnings via early-stage investments in Bitcoin and Dogecoin. In the 30 days before November 4, 2021, Shiba Inu increased in value by over 380 percent. It had increased more than 76 million percent during the 12 months prior. Moreover, its official Twitter account had attracted more followers than that of Ethereum, and it was the third-most searched cryptocurrency on Google.

“Seeing Bitcoin’s rise, some younger investors without a lot of money want to profit from crypto as well,” notes Johnny Lyu, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin. “But you’d need over $60,000 to buy one Bitcoin. So they turn to Dogecoin and SHIB, where you buy tons using just $100.”

On October 28, Shiba Inu’s trading volume was threefold that of Bitcoin’s on KuCoin. Around the same time, more than 500,000 people had signed a petition on Change.org to get the cryptocurrency listed on Robinhood.

• 3.    Despite Its Success, Shiba Inu has Its Skeptics

Although Lyu is a proponent of Shiba Inu as a solid long-term investment, other investors are more skeptical of the cryptocurrency in large part due to its volatile performance history and relative lack of distinction regarding functionality. Bedrock Capital founder Geoff Lewis compared Shiba Inu to Pets.com, which was a massive commercial failure during the dot-com bubble in the early 2000s. Similarly, Peter Mallouk, CEO at Creative Planning, expects the token to eventually be worthless.

Spotlight: 4 of the Most Prominent Bitcoin Investors

A decentralized digital currency developed by the mysterious figure Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009, Bitcoin has become an increasingly prevalent currency over the past 12 years. It had a market cap of more than $1 trillion as of October 27, 2021, at which point an individual Bitcoin token was worth more than $59,000. It was also an accepted form of currency at 36 percent of small-medium companies in the United States as well as at major corporations like Microsoft and AT&T.

Several prominent investors are also proponents of Bitcoin. The following is a look at four of the most notable individual investors in digital currency.

1. 1.    Elon Musk

Tesla founder Elon Musk wasn’t always a proponent of cryptocurrency, but he began showing support for Bitcoin and Dogecoin, among others, in 2021. He was particularly vocal about Bitcoin on Twitter and spoke about Dogecoin while hosting Saturday Night Live in May.

In February 2021, Musk authorized Tesla’s purchase of $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin and announced the company would accept the currency as a form of payment for its electric vehicles. Musk discontinued this in May, but he announced the company would again accept Bitcoin once its miners employ more environmentally friendly practices to power their operations.

• 2.    Paul Tudor Jones

“I like the idea of investing in something . . . reliable, consistent, honest, and 100 percent certain,” Paul Tudor Jones once said during an interview with CNBC. “Bitcoin has appealed to me because it’s a way for me to invest in certainty.”

Jones, a financial guru and founder of Tudor Investment Company, is best known for correctly predicting the Black Monday stock market crash in 1987. He capitalized on the crash and has since become a billionaire investor. His personal investment portfolio has a single-digit percentage allocation of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He is also bullish on the idea of Bitcoin as a more effective inflation hedge than gold.

• 3.    Dan Morehead

Dan Morehead’s Pantera Capital was the first investment firm to prioritize Bitcoin and is now among the most prominent institutional holders of cryptocurrency. Morehead launched the firm’s cryptocurrency fund when Bitcoin was trading at $65. The fund registered a return of 24,000 percent for investors in December 2017.

• 4.    The Winklevoss Twins

Believed to be the first Bitcoin billionaires, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, better known for their involvement in a Facebook lawsuit against Mark Zuckerberg, held around 100,000 coins as of June 2020. Those coins were worth $5.9 billion as of October 27, 2021. The twins invested $11 million in Bitcoin in 2013 and have since heavily invested in Ethereum. In 2015, they launched the Gemini exchange, which allows investors to trade and store digital assets.

The Fake Squid Game Cryptocurrency and How to Avoid Being Scammed

Within one week, the cryptocurrency known as Squid, inspired by the Netflix series Squid Game, went from being a fast-rising decentralized digital currency to an apparent scam. Launched in late October, Squid’s coin value increased by more than 23 million percent and reached a peak value of $2,861.80 as of November 1. The coin was essentially worthless later that day.

Although the identity of Squid’s creator(s) is unknown, the cryptocurrency was promoted heavily across multiple social media platforms. More than 71,000 people subscribed to its Telegram channel and over 57,000 people followed its Twitter account. The unknown developers announced they were discontinuing the project on their Telegram channel. In doing so, they cleaned out more than $3 million in trader funds. This move is known as a “rug pull” in the crypto world—and it isn’t uncommon.

Squid Red Flags

Two days before the rug pull, BGR blogger Chris Smith posted an article with the headline “Avoid This Enticing New Squid Game Cryptocurrency Scam at All Costs.” The coin had surged nearly 25,000 percent at the time of the article, but there had already been some red flags regarding its legitimacy.

The coin’s white paper was riddled with spelling errors and unverifiable claims, but the biggest sign it was a scam was the fact that investors couldn’t cash out. Major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum allow traders to sell coins or store them in a digital wallet. Squid, meanwhile, could only be purchased on a decentralized exchange service known as PancakeSwap and couldn’t be sold. Data provider CoinMarketCap cautioned prospective traders to avoid Squid before the rug pull.

Legitimate Exchanges

Cryptocurrency traders should exercise extensive due diligence with all investments, but one of the easiest ways to avoid being scammed is to use legitimate, secure trading platforms such as Coinbase or Binance. Coinbase, for instance, has more than 68 million users worldwide and stores 98 percent of trader funds offline to prevent loss and theft. It also offers up to $250,000 in FDIC insurance.

Fake Apps and Imposter Websites

Cryptocurrency scammers frequently use fake accounts or bots on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to attract potential investors. Fake apps and websites are also common. According to Bitcoin News, thousands of people have fallen victim to fake cryptocurrency apps. Similarly, fake websites resembling legitimate companies have also fooled traders. Scammers have even gone so far as to purchase domains with slight misspellings from legitimate URLs to steal from traders’ crypto wallets. Make sure to double-check website URLs for accuracy and avoid all sites that don’t have the lock pad icon near the URL bar.

A Look at 6 of the Most Important Milestones in Bitcoin’s History

Developed by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 and first mined the following year, Bitcoin is synonymous with cryptocurrency. It is the most valuable cryptocurrency by a considerable margin, and all other virtual currencies are known as altcoins by the very nature that they aren’t Bitcoin. Below is a look at six important milestones en route to Bitcoin becoming a valued commodity with a market cap of $1.13 trillion.

BitPay Launches Payment Processor (2011)

A single Bitcoin token was valued at just a fraction of a cent in 2010, but reached $32 by June of the following year. One month before it reached that price, BitPay launched a payment processor to facilitate legitimate Bitcoin payments. The platform attracted more than 1,100 merchants within its first year.

Bitcoin’s First Halving (2012)

Individuals are required to “mine” new Bitcoin tokens using hardware that solves complex computational math equations. This process was originally incentivized with the offer of 50 Bitcoin for the mining of a single block. However, Bitcoin underwent a reward “halving” from 50 to 25 in 2012 to reduce inflation and discourage mining. Within four years of this decision, Bitcoin’s price increased from $12 to $650.

The First Bitcoin ATM (2013)

The first-ever Bitcoin ATM was installed in October 2013 in Vancouver, Canada. Another Bitcoin ATM was introduced that same month in Bratislava, Slovakia. As of October 2021, there are nearly 30,000 Bitcoin ATMs spread throughout 73 countries. There are around 30 different types of Bitcoin ATMs, all of which allow individuals to buy and sell Bitcoin.

Price Exceeds $100 for the First Time (2013)

Bitcoin is a commodity that has experienced massive price surges throughout its history. For example, it was trading at $13.40 in January 2013 but surpassed the $100 mark and reached $220 by the beginning of April. Yet, it declined rapidly over the next couple of weeks and was trading at $70 in mid-April.

PayPal Adoption (2020)

PayPal’s adoption of Bitcoin in 2020 further legitimized the cryptocurrency as an accepted form of payment. As opposed to trading cryptocurrencies on special exchanges, individuals can now invest as little as $1 in Bitcoin and select altcoins via the popular digital payments company.

All-Time Highs (2021)

The COVID-19 pandemic shut down many national economies and government policies brought about widespread concerns about the global economy among investors. While many traditional stocks slumped at the outset of the pandemic, Bitcoin’s price surged. It was valued at $7,200 at the beginning of 2020 and, as of March 2021, reached an all-time high price in excess of $60,000.

The 4 Cryptocurrencies with the Largest Gains So Far in 2021

Bitcoin (BTC), the first-ever cryptocurrency, is still the pacesetter in 2021 with a market cap of more than $1 trillion and a single token price value of over $50,000 as of October 8, 2021. Ethereum, the second-most valuable cryptocurrency, had a market cap of around $400 billion as of the same date. The success of Bitcoin has spawned the creation of more than 5,000 other cryptocurrencies, all of which are known as altcoins. Below are the four altcoins that increased in value the most during the first three quarters of 2021.

Ecomi (OMI)

OMI is the utility token used on Ecomi’s VeVe app, which is a marketplace through which individuals can buy, sell, and trade non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The token increased in price by more than 15,000 percent through the first three quarters of 2021 as a result of Ecomi’s partnerships with iconic pop culture brands such as Marvel, Adventure Time, DC, and Star Trek.

OMI tokens can be purchased at multiple exchanges, including Bitforex, Uniswap, and AscendEx. A $1,000 investment in OMI at the beginning of 2021 would have returned $150,340 through the third quarter of 2021.

Gala (GALA)

Gala Games is a company that is striving to redefine how users play games with a renewed focus on creative thinking made possible by blockchain technology. Players can use the business’ utility token, GALA, to influence what games it should develop. To date, it has released one playable game (Town Star) and released a popular NFT collectible series; its most expensive NFT is valued at $3 million. Gala Games has more than 1.3 million active users per month.

GALA’s price increased by 10,891.26 percent during the first three quarters of 2021, meaning a $1,000 investment at the start of the year was worth $108,912.60 at the end of Q3.

Axie Infinity (AXS)

Axie Infinity’s utility token Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) increased in value by 10,598.52 percent through the first three quarters of 2021. Built on the Ethereum platform, Axie Infinity stands out as the most notable Play-to-Earn crypto gaming ecosystem. Players own and are responsible for the health of digital pets and can perform community-based tasks to receive rewards.

Telcoin (TEL)

Telcoin is another Ethereum-based platform that was created to facilitate cross-border remittances in the telecommunications sector. It is particularly beneficial for service providers with clients residing in regions without access to traditional banks. It is active in markets including Indonesia, Uganda, and Kenya. Its utility token, TEL, increased in value by 9,597.44 percent through the third quarter of 2021.

Beyond Crypto: How Blockchain Is Being Utilized in These 3 Industries

Blockchain technology is a core component of cryptocurrency and understanding how crypto transactions are facilitated. Blockchain, introduced in 2008 along with the proposal for Bitcoin, is an open-source database that stores information in blocks that are chained together in chronological order. These blocks have storage limits, and new blocks are created when they reach capacity.

For Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, blockchain functions as a decentralized ledger to store transactions that can be viewed by anyone. It does, however, have potential applications across a broad range of industries to enhance transparency via smart contracts stored in shared and secured databases.

“In this world every agreement, every process, every task, and every payment would have a digital record and signature that could be identified, validated, stored, and shared,” write authors Marco Iansiti and Karim R. Lakhani in a 2017 Harvard Business Review article. “Intermediaries like lawyers, brokers, and bankers might no longer be necessary.”

The following are three industries in which blockchain has been utilized to boost transparency, enhance efficiency, and cut costs.

1. Insurance

Many insurance companies have taken advantage of blockchain to automate time-consuming processes and reduce the frequency of insurance fraud via smart contracts. Claims can be stored on the blockchain, which automatically rejects duplicate claims for the same incident. IBM has built a specific network for the insurance industry in partnership with the American Association of Insurance Services. Known as openIDL, the network streamlines compliance requirements and automates regulatory reporting.

Insurwave is a blockchain network that caters to marine hull insurance companies. Developed in collaboration by companies including Microsoft and A. P. Moller-Maersk Group, Insurwave provides accurate, up-to-the-minute information, including ship location and safety hazards, to insurers and customers. Nationwide, meanwhile, is testing out a blockchain-based solution that promises to instantly validate insurance coverage in real-time. This would be especially beneficial for insurers and law enforcement.

2. Travel

Blockchain can also disrupt the travel industry by allowing consumers to book accommodations without the fees charged by most platforms. Hotel booking platform GOeureka provides users with the option to book one of more than 400,000 hotel rooms with no commission costs. TUI Group is working to provide similar services. The use of blockchain for the travel sector could ultimately render platforms like Airbnb and Expedia obsolete.

3. Logistics

Dozens of shipping companies, including Chronicled and SkyCell, leverage blockchain technology to enhance operational efficiency. With blockchain, these companies can more accurately record data and track shipping containers. Logistics companies can also use data obtained from blockchain to implement quicker routes. This, in turn, can increase revenue and decrease instances of mislabeled or stolen cargo, which costs the industry more than $50 billion per year.

Crypto Creators: 3 of the Most Prominent Figures in the Market

The cryptocurrency market has evolved dramatically since the creation of Bitcoin (BTC) in 2009. BTC, the first-ever digital token distributed via a decentralized structure without bank or government interference, is accepted by travel agencies, real estate businesses, and online shopping outlets, among other companies. In August 2021, BTC had a market cap of more than $858 billion.

The success of BTC has spawned a plethora of other digital tokens, all of which are known as altcoins. These include Litecoin, Namecoin, and Ethereum. The following is a look at the creators of three of the most popular cryptocurrencies.

Satoshi Nakamoto

Satoshi Nakamoto is credited with having created BTC. In March 2020, his online wallets had 980,000 BTC, or $6.2 billion, yet, interestingly, nobody is certain about who Nakamoto is. Reporters and Internet sleuths have attempted to uncover his identity, but these efforts have been unsuccessful. Craig Wright, Dorian Nakamoto, and Nick Szabo are three of the leading figures who have been proposed as the true identity of the BTC creator.

Wired magazine posited Wright as the founder of BTC in a December 2015 feature. The publication cited references on his blog and leaked e-mails as well as a transcript of a meeting with tax officials and attorneys in which he stated: “I did my best to try and hide the fact that I’ve been running bitcoin since 2009. By the end of this, I think half the world is going to bloody know.” Wright has embraced this depiction, but subsequent evidence, including the fact his blog posts and public encryption keys were backdated, suggests otherwise.

In March 2014, Newsweek presented Dorian Nakamoto as the founder of BTC because of his last name and his training as an engineer. Nakamoto, however, denied it. Szabo, meanwhile, created BTC precursor Bit Gold in 2008 and is believed by author Dominic Frisby to be the true identity of Nakamoto.

Vitalik Buterin

Vitalik Buterin, who called Wright a fraud for claiming to create BTC, launched Ethereum in 2014. Buterin, 27, wrote his first computer game when he was 7 years old and began creating full-fledged games just three years later. He developed Ethereum as an open-source alternative to BTC and funded the project via an online crowd sale. Ethereum had a market cap of $435.6 billion as of September 1.

Jackson Palmer

An alumnus of the University of Newcastle, Jackson Palmer is a digital marketing specialist who created Dogecoin in 2013 as a “joke currency.” Despite its humorous intentions, Dogecoin now has a market cap of $37.6 billion and has been backed by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk.

6 Companies You Didn’t Know Accept Bitcoin As Payment

Since its creation in 2009, Bitcoin has gone from an innovative yet obscure decentralized digital currency to one with a market cap of more than $800 billion. In fact, one single token was worth more than $42,000, as of September 21, 2021.

The currency has also increasingly gained mainstream adoption over the years. Microsoft and PayPal began accepting Bitcoin payments in 2014. Tesla, in February 2021, purchased $1.5 billion worth of the cryptocurrency and announced it would accept it as payment for its vehicles. Below is a look at six companies that accept Bitcoin.

Overstock

Although many consider Microsoft and PayPal as the first major companies to accept Bitcoin, Overstock had already ventured into the decentralized payment space nine months prior. The online retailer started accepting Bitcoin in January 2014 via a partnership with Coinbase. It also invested substantially in blockchain technology. The headline of a CNN story in 2018 said Overstock is “basically a crypto company now.”

Burger King

Burger King outlets in Venezuela began accepting Bitcoin in 2020. They also accepted altcoins such as Litecoin, Ethereum, and Dash thanks to a partnership with Cryptobuyer. Burger King first ventured into the crypto space the year prior when its German branch accepted Bitcoin for online delivery orders on the Lieferservice app. Subway and Pizza Hut are among the other fast food chains with select outlets that accept Bitcoin.

Twitch

Twitch, which is owned by Amazon, is a leading video game streaming platform that allows users to pay for channel subscriptions with Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash. The company removed this option from its payments section in March 2019 amid months of sideways trading for Bitcoin, but added it back in June of that year.

Whole Foods

Whole Foods is another Amazon-owned company that accepts Bitcoin as payment. The national retailer is able to seamlessly accept Bitcoin using digital scanners in the same way it would accept payments via Apple Pay and other digital wallets. This was made possible due to a partnership between Flexa and Gemini that provided the necessary technology for major retailers to make Flexa’s payment processing platform compatible with digital scanners.

Miami Dolphins and Dallas Mavericks

In 2019, the NFL’s Miami Dolphins announced that it would begin accepting Bitcoin and Litecoin as payment for its 50/50 raffle. The NBA’s Dallas Mavericks took things a step further later that year with the announcement that it would allow fans to use Bitcoin to purchase game tickets and team merchandise. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is a major proponent of cryptocurrency and is particularly bullish on dogecoin.

What You Need to Know about These 3 Proposed Cryptocurrency Regulations

A cryptocurrency is a digital asset that can be bought and sold via decentralized crypto exchanges. There are in excess of 4,000 cryptocurrencies, all of which are created by private individuals or enterprises and free from government interference. However, this may not always be the case.

Individuals can hold cryptocurrencies without releasing any personal information. While this has its benefits, it has also provided protection to online scammers and criminals. According to the research group Chainalysis, hacker gangs secured more than $350 million in combined crypto ransom payments in 2020. Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal published an article titled “Why Crime Could Kill Crypto.”

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken note of this and, as a result, U.S. lawmakers introduced a provision to protect investors and halt crypto crime as part of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill proposed in August.

Brokerage Definition Expansion

The crypto-focused provision in the $1 trillion infrastructure bill would broaden the scope of what it means to be a brokerage. More specifically, it would include cryptocurrency exchanges. This means these companies would be forced to report tax information regarding crypto transactions beginning in 2024. Consequently, it will make filing taxes easier for investors.

“The bill is generally investor-friendly because it makes crypto tax compliance easier for investors,” said Shehan Chandrasekera, CPA, head of tax strategy at CoinTracker.io, speaking to NextAdvisor. “This is because if the bill passes, exchanges will have to issue 1099-B tax forms with cost basis information to investors.”

Stablecoin Regulation

Not all cryptocurrencies are completely independent of central authorities. Some, known as stablecoins, are associated with currency such as the U.S. dollar or the price of a commodity. These are generally less volatile than traditional cryptocurrencies while still offering instant processing.

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler noted that almost 75 percent of trading across cryptocurrency platforms in July involved a stablecoin. While there aren’t any concrete plans to address stablecoin regulation, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have both spoken on the record about the need to create a regulatory framework to protect investors and the financial system.

Crypto ETFs

In addition to regulating crypto exchanges to reduce crimes associated with cryptocurrency, the SEC is exploring the possibility of approving cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This would allow Americans to purchase crypto via traditional investment accounts offered via investment management companies like Vanguard and Fidelity.

Gensler noted that the SEC has authority to enact its federal securities laws in the crypto space as initial coin offerings essentially function as securities. He believes the majority of crypto tokens are unregistered securities.

Crypto Glossary: 3 Terms All Investors Absolutely Need to Know

Once a relatively unknown digital currency, Bitcoin (BTC) is now a popular and valuable form of decentralized finance free from government interference. It had a market cap of more than $836 billion and one BTC token was worth more than $46,000 as of September 13, 2021. The creation of BTC in 2009 has spawned thousands of other cryptocurrencies, all of which are known as altcoins.

BTC, and all other cryptocurrencies, is created, or “mined,” via blockchain technology. This decentralized ledger operates with support from a system of computers known as “nodes” or “miners.” These are just some of the terms that prospective investors need to know about before they enter the crypto market. Below is a look at three others.

Fork

BTC had roughly 10,000 nodes as of June 2021. A prospective cyber-criminal seeking to take down the system or commit other nefarious acts would have to take control of at least 51 percent of BTC’s computing power. This is unlikely but not without precedence. Even if this does not occur due to criminal activity, BTC miners could “fork” to a new blockchain. This means they would alter its rules and ultimately create a new path.

Bitcoin SV (BSV) is one of many BTC forks. It was created in November 2018 out of another BTC fork, Bitcoin Cash, in response to disagreements between developers as to how to grow the cryptocurrency. BSV was targeted in a 51 percent attack this past August.

“While the motive isn’t entirely clear at present it seems likely it is little more than theft and profiteering and the fact that we can now repel such actions is very encouraging,” nChain chief technology officer Steve Shadders told Forbes following the attack.

Ethereum

Launched in 2014, Ethereum is the most valuable altcoin with a market cap of more than $375 billion as of September 13, 2021. The decentralized software platform was created by Joe Lubin as an open-source platform to allow developers to publish smart contracts and other financial products that can be accessed freely by anybody worldwide. This makes it especially appealing to those without access to traditional banking systems.

HODL

HODL originated from a misspelled BTC forum post in 2013 in which user GameKyuubi stated “I AM HODLING.” The price of BTC was plummeting at the time and, because he had limited trading experience, his inclination was to hold the token as opposed to sell it. It has since come to serve as an acronym for “Hold On for Dear Life” and represents the passive investment strategy employed by many in regard to BTC and other cryptocurrencies.