Shiba Inu (SHIB) had one of the most impressive debuts in crypto history. The Dogecoin rival launched in August 2020, and within months registered six-digit percentage point rallies. Early investors made massive returns with minimal investments. Fans began referring to the project as a “millionaire-maker.” People with little to no trading or investing experience made millions of dollars in profit. Many were even able to retire from their jobs. Let’s talk about one such early Shiba Inu (SHIB) investor who turned an investment of about $13,000 into nearly $8.9 billion.
This Shiba Inu Investor Turned $13,000 Into $8.9 Billion

One OG Shiba Inu (SHIB) investor put in $13,000 into the project in its early days. When Shiba Inu (SHIB) hit an all-time high of $0.00008616 in October 2021, the investment ballooned to $8.9 billion. Over the past few years, the price of SHIB has been severely impacted. On 30th April 2026, the whale sold approximately $4.9 million worth of 800 billion SHIB tokens. As of today, the whale still has approximately $625 million in Shiba Inu (SHIB) tokens, according to the Arkham data.
Can You Still Make It Big With The Memecoin?
Shiba Inu (SHIB) garnered incredible popularity among younger investors who wanted to make it big in crypto with little investments. Many were enamored by SHIB’s incredible 2021 rally, but entered the project at its peak. CoinGecko data shows that SHIB is currently down by nearly 95% from its peak. A majority of SHIB holders are sitting on big losses.
One of the most significant catalysts for Shiba Inu’s (SHIB) 2021 rally was Vitalik Buterin’s token burn. The Ethereum co-founder received half of SHIB’s entire supply after its launch. Buterin decided to burn 90% of the coins he received, leading to a massive supply dip. High demand and a sudden supply dip led to a big price rally.
Also Read: Which Country Has the Highest Number of Shiba Inu Holders (SHIB)?
Shiba Inu (SHIB) still has about 589 trillion coins in circulation. Another Buterin-level burn is unlikely. Given its high supply and current low demand, it is unlikely that SHIB will repeat its 2021 bull cycle.