Advertisement
New Zealand markets closed
  • NZX 50

    11,796.21
    -39.83 (-0.34%)
     
  • NZD/USD

    0.5895
    -0.0010 (-0.18%)
     
  • NZD/EUR

    0.5526
    -0.0019 (-0.34%)
     
  • ALL ORDS

    7,817.40
    -81.50 (-1.03%)
     
  • ASX 200

    7,567.30
    -74.80 (-0.98%)
     
  • OIL

    82.86
    +0.13 (+0.16%)
     
  • GOLD

    2,404.60
    +6.60 (+0.28%)
     
  • NASDAQ

    17,175.83
    -218.48 (-1.26%)
     
  • FTSE

    7,895.85
    +18.80 (+0.24%)
     
  • Dow Jones

    37,955.10
    +179.72 (+0.48%)
     
  • DAX

    17,737.36
    -100.04 (-0.56%)
     
  • Hang Seng

    16,224.14
    -161.73 (-0.99%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    37,068.35
    -1,011.35 (-2.66%)
     
  • NZD/JPY

    91.0930
    -0.1610 (-0.18%)
     

Crypto: Shib and Doge up over 15% in a week

UKRAINE - 2021/06/03: In this photo illustration, a cryptocurrency Shiba Token $SHIB (Shiba Inu) logo is seen on a smartphone with a pc screen in the background. (Photo Illustration by Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Shiba inu soared 30% in the past seven days. Photo: Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA/LightRocket via Getty (SOPA Images via Getty Images)

A memecoin rally has rippled through crypto markets in the past week. Shiba inu (SHIB-USD) soared 30% in the past seven days, flipping Avalanche in market cap rankings to take 12th position.

Shib now stands at $0.00001625, and the rally has brought dejitaru tsuka (TSUKA-USD) along with it, up nearly 100% in a week to stand at $0.05, with dogecoin (DOGE-USD) up 16% to $0.08.

Read more: Crypto live prices

The current memecoin rally is a signal that risk-on behaviour has returned to crypto markets.

Memecoins illustrate the "crypto-casino" more than any other token, because of their satirical and debatable utility. These assets simply exist to be traded.

However, the strong community behind each memecoin is an unquantifiable factor that can become a major value driver when the incentivised collective all move in one direction.

ADVERTISEMENT

Memecoin communities are a unique phenomenon within the burgeoning web3 space.

Notable for their zeal, they have shown a capacity to create multi-billion market cap projects in a matter of months.

Read more: Crypto: What is Ethereum's Soulbound token?

The gains made by the heavyweight memecoins has no notable catalyst driving the rally.

Memcoins move together, with dogecoin leading the pack. Shiba inu correlates with dogecoin while dejitaru tsuka, with its rumoured link to mysterious shiba inu founder Ryoshi, tends to correlate with its older relative.

Blue chip cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin (BTC-USD) and ethereum (ETH-USD), have been correlating with the Nasdaq (^IXIC).

But, despite equity markets plummeting due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Europe, last month bitcoin put on a contrarian performance with a rally of 25%.

Watch: Karl Marx, bitcoin and capitalism: The Crypto Mile Episode 7

Bitcoin has yet to remain independent of market fluctuations and become a long-term store of value.

On Tuesday, bitcoin remained steady at $24,000 and the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, ethereum is up 6% in the week to $1,881.

The memecoin rally came after ethereum broke through the $2,000 level on Sunday night ahead of the network’s Merge event expected in September, and bitcoin rose to over $25,000 for the first time since June.

The promise of life-changing wealth from memecoin investment has been ingrained in the psyche of crypto-enthusiasts since a story reached mainstream media of an anonymous shiba inu holder who purchased $8,000 of the token in August 2020.

The token then skyrocketed to a value of $5.7bn in October 2021.

However, whether the shiba inu market had the liquidity and price stability to allow a full cash-out of that amount was never tested.

The Crypto Mile: Episode 6 Ethereum insider reveals consequences of 'the merge'