This is not financial advice. This is for educational purposes only. Please note that cryptocurrency is a highly volatile asset class; only invest what you can afford to lose.
Update – June 15: Coinbase Pro announced that it would allow users to trade $SHIB by June 17, however, the SHIB trading launch got delayed. Coinbase said it would announce when SHIB trading will resume, but as of this writing, you cannot purchase SHIB on Coinbase yet.
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“How to buy Shiba Inu coin” is a trending question as crypto investors scramble to buy the new “Dogecoin killer.” Shiba’s social media hype skyrocketed after Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, legitimized Shiba Inu on May 10 by adding it to its list of supported coins.
The day before Binance listed $SHIB, it was trading at around $0.000014. On May 10, SHIB skyrocketed to an all-time high of $0.000037. That’s a 164% increase! If you were brave enough to invest $1,050 (75 million tokens worth) in SHIB on May 9, you would have made $1,725 in profit the next day.
Could it go back up again? No one knows. But if you’re willing to dive into a high risk cryptocurrency project, stick around for this “how to buy Shiba Inu” tutorial. I’ll also show you how to buy Shiba Inu on different platforms. Before I explain how to purchase this meme token, it’s important to dive into what SHIB is all about.
What is Shiba Inu coin?
Shiba Inu coin is an ERC-20 token, a fancy way of saying that it runs on the Ethereum blockchain and utilizes the network’s smart-contract technology.
After perusing through Shiba Inu coin’s 22-page white paper (the pun-loving author calls it a “woofpaper”), the meme token’s main mission is to preserve one of the main tenets of cryptocurrency: decentralization. Decentralization prevents authoritative institutions (e.g. banks and governmental bodies) from monopolizing control.
“We believe through the power of collective decentralization, we can build something stronger than a centralized team could create,” SHIB’s founder Ryoshi (psuedonym) said. “A community-run token is nothing without the united individuals who give it purpose.”
The woofpaper also delves into why SHIB runs on Ethereum, explaining that it is a secure, well-established blockchain that lets SHIB remain independent of moderating forces.
Interestingly, the woofpaper revealed that 50% of SHIB’s token supply was sent to Vitalik Buterin’s wallet (Buterin is Ethereum’s founder). You’re probably wondering, “Why the hell would they do that?” The motive behind gifting Buterin Shiba tokens was not mentioned in the woofpaper, but according to Celebrity Net Worth, it was likely a publicity stunt. Benzinga, however, believes Shiba’s team gifted Buterin the coins to make SHIB more scarce. Both theories could be true.
The problem with Buterin’s large SHIB ownership is that if he decides to sell his tokens, SHIB’s price will experience a severe plummet — and that’s exactly what happened. On May 12, Buterin announced that he sold $1 billion worth of SHIB tokens for charity. Although Buterin’s shocking act was for a good cause, it unnerved SHIB token holders.
On May 16, to SHIB holders’ delight, Buterin announced that he burned 90% of his Shiba Inu coins, and planned to donate the remaining 10% to charity. Burning tokens increases scarcity, and as a result, the price is likely to go up. After a tumultuous week, there’s finally hope for Shiba Inu coin — the cryptocurrency dubbed “the Dogecoin killer.”
Where to buy Shiba Inu coin
There are several platforms where you can buy Shiba, including Binance, Crypto.com, Atomic Wallet and KuCoin.
You can also buy SHIB on Uniswap (via Trust Wallet), which requires you to exchange Ethereum for SHIB.
How to buy Shiba Inu coin (Trust Wallet)
One way to buy Shiba Inu coin is to purchase ETH and convert it into SHIB. For this tutorial, you’ll need to have a Coinbase account as well as the TrustWallet app to access Uniswap (a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange).
Keep in mind that using Uniswap requires you to pay an Ethereum network fee to buy SHIB). If the fee is too high, try waiting an hour or two for the price to drop. You can also check out the following sections for tips on how to avoid sky-high Ethereum fees. Without further ado, let’s dive into how to buy Shiba.
1. Sign into your Coinbase account and click on “Trade” located on the far-left panel (it’s the icon with two arrows).
2. Find Ethereum on the list of tradable assets and click on “Buy.”
3. Type in how much you’d like to invest in SHIB. As mentioned, you’ll need to pay an Ethereum network fee. Make sure to throw in an extra $150 to $200 to cover it.
4. Click on “Preview Buy.” The next page will show your total, including Coinbase fees. Click on “Buy Now.”
5. We’ll return to Coinbase, but for now, let’s pull up the TrustWallet app. To enable SHIB, tap on the top-right icon and type “Shiba” into the search bar. When it pops up, toggle it on, ensuring that the button turns green. Click on “Done.”
6. Tap on “Ethereum” and hit “Receive.” Copy and paste the TrustWallet address.
7. Open Coinbase and click on the “Send/Receive” button on the top-right corner. Make sure Ethereum is selected in the “Pay With” section. Paste the TrustWallet address in the “To” section. Hit “Continue.”
8. Once the transaction is confirmed, you’ll receive a message that your ETH transaction will take about 10 minutes, so don’t panic if you don’t see it appear on TrustWallet right away. It takes a while.
9. Once your ETH hits TrustWallet, tap on the quadruple-dot icon on the bottom taskbar. If you’re on Android, it should say “dApps.” If you’re on iOS, you’re likely missing this icon (Apple doesn’t like decentralized apps). In order to get it, open Safari and type “trust://browser_enable.” A prompt will appear with the following message: “Open this page in ‘trust’?” Tap “Open.” The four-dot icon should appear with the word “Browser.”
10. Tap on the four-dot icon and tap on “Uniswap Exchange.”
11. Tap on “Select a token” and search for SHIB in the search bar. Click on “Import.”
12. Tap on the “Max” button, which will input all the ETH in your wallet.
13. Next, select “Swap” followed by “Confirm Swap.”
14. You’ll get a message that says, “You don’t have enough Ethereum (ETH) to cover network fees.” You’ll be shown the cost of the network fee. Take note of it and subtract it from your ETH balance. In the example below, the network fee is 0.0585518758 ETH. Subtract that from your balance (0.08472432 ETH); you’ll get 0.0261724442.
15. Tap on “Cancel” and replace the ETH amount with the number that subtracts the network fee (e.g. 0.0261724442). Again, click on “Swap” followed by “Confirm Swap.”
16. Voila! You’ve successfully bought Shiba coin.
What to do if you don’t see your Shiba Inu coin in TrustWallet
For some, you may be asking “Okay great, I bought some Shiba Inu, but where are they?” Don’t worry! Follow these steps to enable SHIB in TrustWallet and confirm that you have them in your possession.
1. Copy Shiba Inu’s Contract Address here: 0x95aD61b0a150d79219dCF64E1E6Cc01f0B64C4cE
2. Navigate back to TrustWallet’s main page. Click the blue icon on the top-right corner and scroll to the bottom.
3. In the search bar, type in “Shiba.”
4. Tap on “Add Custom Token.” Under “Contract Address,” paste SHIB’s Contract Address. Tap “Save.”
5. Voila! You should see your SHIB tokens in the TrustWallet app.
How to buy Shiba Inu coin and avoid high Ethereum gas fees
There are ways to avoid Ethereum fees, but keep in mind if you live in a state that has strict crypto regulations, some apps that help you dodge these sky-high expenses are not available to you. KuCoin, for example, is a highly suggested platform for curbing high ETH fees, but it’s not available in New York.
However, if you’re not a New York resident, you can use KuCoin to buy SHIB at a lower rate. It’s a little convoluted, but it’s worth it. First, you must purchase XLM on Coinbase. Next, transfer XLM to the Atomic Wallet app and swap it for Binance Coin (BNB). Transfer the BNB to your KuCoin account, swap it for Tether (USDT) and purchase SHIB.
You can also purchase SHIB directly on Crypto.com app, which also has lower fees, but this platform is currently experiencing a high influx of new members, so the onboarding process takes a few days. On the plus side, there’s no swapping involved, so it might be worth the wait.
How to buy Shiba Inu coin (Binance)
To buy Shiba Inu on Binance, you have to purchase Binance USD (BUSD) or Tether (USDT) and trade it for SHIB.
It’s worth noting that Binance doesn’t support seven states: Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, New York, Texas and Vermont. If you live in any of these states (like myself), you won’t be able to purchase SHIB on Binance. If you live in the US, make sure to visit the Binance US platform.
Bottom line
Shiba Inu coin is a nascent token in the virtual currency market, so it’s riskier than more established cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Even Binance warned its users about investing in Shiba, stating “SHIB is a relatively new token that poses a higher than normal risk, and as such will likely be subject to high price volatility after the Binance listing. Please ensure that you exercise sufficient risk management.”
As with any investment, only invest what you can afford. SHIB is a highly speculative asset, so be prepared for wild swings in volatility.
