Holders of meme coins such as Shiba Inu (SHIB) are not generally known for their diamond hands, a term that is used for investors with particularly high risk tolerance and a penchant to ride out extreme bearish phases. Yet, there are exceptions to every generalization, and today we got a glimpse at a particularly emblematic representation of this fortitude.
After being dormant for 4.5 years, the super diamond trader finally sold $SHIB at a profit.
He spent 2 $ETH($2,625) to buy 48.09B $SHIB on Feb 1, 2021, and sold it for 278.7 $ETH($1.1M) just now, a gain of 419x!https://t.co/Pw9i9wbKcn pic.twitter.com/L3T4mrIpOG
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) May 27, 2024
To wit, an investor spent 2 Ether coins ($2,625) to buy 48.09 billion Shiba Inu tokens on the 01st of February, 2021. After Shiba Inu's price collapsed to its lowest level since October 2021 a few months back, the investor sold his SHIB stake today for a cumulative gain of around 419x, corresponding to $1.1 million.
The above chart gives an aerial view of the wild swings that Shiba Inu's price has encountered over the past three years.
Of course, all crypto bull cycles move in a relatively predictable fashion, with Bitcoin's halving event first spurring a recovery in the world's largest cryptocurrency, which then translates into outsized gains in Ethereum. Eventually, the animal spirits in the crypto sphere spread outward to encompass the so-called meme coins like Shiba Inu, which are characterized by their lack of utility and an uncapped supply.
This time around, spot crypto ETFs have proved to be a game-changer of sorts, substantially heightening investor expectations around the influx of capital and the ongoing financialization and commoditization of cryptocurrencies.
Of course, as we noted in a related post, the SEC has now green-signalled spot Ethereum ETFs in the US after approving their Bitcoin counterparts in January 2024. While these Ether-focused vehicles will not start trading just yet, they do set the stage for vast pools of capital gaining an unfettered access to Ethereum's upside volatility. This oncoming additional demand should result in superior liquidity within the Ether ecosystem, driving up activity across Ethereum's mainnet and the associated Level 2 chains. Also, the lack of staking will prevent Wall Street behemoths from controlling a critical component of Ethereum's core utility.
If ETH is not a security and ETFs can hold it as a non-security, then none of the other L1s/tokens are securities and ETFs are coming to those assets too.
Then boomers buy them, lose money and realize that Bitcoin is both different and better. And so begins a new cycle.
— Gabor Gurbacs (@gaborgurbacs) May 23, 2024
With Bitcoin and Ethereum both successfully clearing their near-term bullish stimuli, the attention is now predictably shifting toward Shiba Inu and other meme coins that have been consolidating over the past few weeks.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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