Leading meme currencies Shiba Inu and Dogecoin have been on an extended downward trend for nearly a year. The dramatic fall has eroded the shine from the memecoin segment, rendering them irrelevant. This led traders to take entry positions in leading altcoins, while the memecoin industry is left to bleed. The sector is already reeling under pressure, with whales ignoring SHIB and DOGE.

Altcoins such as XRP, ADA, and Solana have seen an uptick in investments despite their lackluster performance. Traders are now seeking assets that have real-world use cases rather than random talk shops like Shiba Inu and Dogecoin. The shift showcases that the cryptocurrency market is maturing, making traders select assets that can solve issues rather than blindly taking entry positions into memecoins.

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$5 Billion Market Cap Reduction: Shiba Inu & Dogecoin Lose Big

Shiba Inu and Dogecoin have combinedly lost $5 billion in market cap in 2026. That’s a big number, considering that the two memecoins are under the top 50 cryptocurrency list. While DOGE surged today after Elon Musk’s tweet, it is now losing steam in the indices. The temporary spike is unable to hold strong as investors’ confidence is low.

While Shiba Inu is down 58% in a year, Dogecoin is down 60% during the same timeframe. Both these memecurrencies were soaring in the charts just four years ago and were touted to be the next big thing in the cryptocurrency market. Traders hurriedly took an entry position in the classic ‘fear of missing out’ (FOMO) scenario.

However, traders are now regretting the choice as the same investment in Bitcoin or Ethereum could have generated better profits. Investors’ money is now stuck in Shiba Inu and Dogecoin, as selling off could mean taking huge losses. The only option now is to hold on to the memecoins and hope for them to rise, or just break even.