The viral success of shiba inu coin (SHIB) means it’s easy to purchase the dogecoin competitor across a range of platforms. Here’s what you need to know.
By
Andrey Sergeenkov
Updated May 16, 2024, 7:14 p.m. Published Nov 18, 2021, 1:30 p.m.
Shiba inu coin (SHIB) is one of the most hotly traded cryptocurrencies. A big part of the underdog’s viral success in the market can be attributed to dogecoin’s explosive price performance and the die-hard following the project created around the Shiba Inu theme.
As the main market competitor and spinoff of dogecoin, shib token has drawn significant speculation from crypto investors who are hoping to ride the next doggy-themed wave and try to make fast returns like many early dogecoin investors enjoyed at the start of the year.
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While it shares many similarities with dogecoin, namely its Shiba Inu theme, extremely large supply and very low-cost token, shiba inu coin sets out to provide substantially more utility for its holders than is currently available with doge. For starters, the project launched its own ShibaSwap decentralized exchange where crypto holders can swap SHIB for a range of other listed tokens, much like Uniswap or Balancer. Building on this, shiba inu coin also features two other ERC-20 tokens – known as BONE and LEASH – which provide additional utility including governance and a store of value for holders.
Read More: Investing in Meme Coins? 3 Things Every Crypto Trader Should Know
All three tokens within the shiba inu coin ecosystem can be used to generate interest by either staking or providing liquidity on the ShibaSwap platform, making it an equally hot DeFi token too.
Where and how to buy shiba inu coin
Where to buy shiba inu coin on centralized exchanges
Thanks to the mainstream popularity of meme coins, cryptocurrencies like SHIB are widely available on most leading centralized cryptocurrency exchanges. These include:
- Coinbase
- Binance
- Huobi Global
- Gemini
- KuCoin
How to buy shiba inu coin (SHIB) on centralized exchanges
The process for signing up and using these exchanges to buy SHIB is relatively straightforward and follows the same steps regardless of which platform you opt for.
As Binance is one of the exchanges where the highest volume of SHIB tokens are traded, we’ll use this platform as an example.
- Sign up for an exchange account or sign in if you already have one.
- Complete the know-your-customer (KYC) process to be allowed to buy cryptocurrencies if you haven’t already done so. This process usually takes a few minutes to complete. On Binance, this can be found by hovering over the account icon in the top right corner and clicking on “Identification.”
- Navigate to the page to buy cryptocurrency – USDT, USDC, DOGE or skip this step if a direct fiat currency pair is available – either through a credit/debit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency or other option provided by the exchange.
- Insert the amount you want to spend on the purchase (either in fiat currency or cryptocurrency)
- Select your payment method of choice
- Check any disclaimer buttons or boxes there may be and hit confirm. Complete the payment process, and – depending on the payment method and exchange guidelines – the purchased amount should become accessible in your wallet within a few minutes.
- If you had to fund your account with fiat currency – such as U.S. dollars (USD) – to purchase shiba inu coin, it may take one to five business days before the funds are credited. Afterward, you still need to swap your balance for SHIB. This process can be completed by going to the “Markets” section of your exchange, finding the SHIB/USD (or SHIB – other currency pair), and using the “Trade” option. On Binance, clicking this button will take you to the exchange interface where you will be guided through the process of placing a trade via the order book system.
Where to buy shiba inu coin on decentralized exchanges
There are two main decentralized exchanges where you can buy shiba inu coins. The first is the ShibaSwap platform – the native decentralized exchange of shiba inu coin. The second is Uniswap, a popular automated Ethereum-based crypto exchange.
How to buy shiba inu coin on ShibaSwap
There are two main decentralized exchanges where you can easily purchase shiba inu coins. The first is the ShibaSwap platform – the native decentralized exchange of shiba inu. In order to use this platform to buy shiba inu coin, you will need to connect your Ethereum-based wallet by clicking the “Connect wallet” option in the top right corner (red arrow). There are three different wallet options available (white arrows):
- Metamask
- Wallet Connect
- Coinbase Wallet
Read More: Your First Crypto Wallet: How to Use It and Why You Need One
Since Metamask is the most commonly used wallet, we’ll use that as an example. If you haven’t already, you’ll need to download Metamask by heading to the official website here and clicking “download now.” The operating system or browser you use will determine which version you download.
Once you’re done, you’ll need to create a password and fund your Metamask wallet with an amount of ether – the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain. The easiest way to do this is by clicking the “buy” button on Metamask. This will take you to a page with several options where you can purchase ether using your debit or credit card.
Once you’ve completed this step, you’re ready to swap ether (ETH) for shiba inu coin (SHIB) on ShibaSwap.
Return to the ShibaSwap website and find the “Swap” tile on the lower left-hand side of the home screen. Clicking will take you to the decentralized swap feature of the platform. Here, you’ll need to select “ETH” in the top box and search for “shiba inu coin” and select it for the second box, as shown below.
You’ll then need to decide how many SHIB tokens you’ll want to swap your ether for. Once you’ve chosen the correct amount, and are happy with the fees, click the “swap” button.
You’ll now have SHIB tokens in your Metamask wallet.
How to buy shiba inu coin on Uniswap
Purchasing SHIB token using Uniswap is virtually identical to buying the token via ShibaSwap; you’ll need to visit the official website here and click the “launch app” button in the top right-hand corner. You’ll then need to connect your wallet in the same fashion.
Uniswap supports a greater range of Ethereum-based wallets than ShibaSwap. In addition to the three mentioned above in the ShibaSwap section, you can also connect:
- Fortmatic wallet
- Portis wallet
You’ll then need to search for the SHIB token option in the second box, just as before. In this case, you may need to import the token if it isn’t already on the list. When doing this, it’s vitally important you import the right token and not a fake one. Here’s the correct contract address for shiba inu coin, as provided by Coinmarketcap:
0x95ad61b0a150d79219dcf64e1e6cc01f0b64c4ce
Once you’re confident you have imported the correct shiba inu coin, you can decide how much ether you want to swap into SHIB and complete the transaction. Your new tokens will appear in your Metamask wallet after a few minutes.
How to buy shiba inu coin on mobile devices
The requirements for buying shiba inu coin (SHIB) on mobile devices are similar to buying SHIB using a centralized exchange. You will need an account and complete any KYC procedures required before you can undertake any action.
Other steps include:
1) Download the mobile app of the exchange you want to use or visit the mobile-optimized version of a trading platform.
2) Set a password and write down the seed/recovery phrase on paper and do not make a digital copy! In the event you lose your mobile phone or it gets stolen, you’ll need the seed/recovery phrase to move your existing account onto a new smartphone.
Read more: 4 Ways to Stay Safe in Crypto
Here’s a list of all the leading mobile trading apps that support shiba inu coin trading:
- Crypto.com
- Coinbase
- Binance
- eToroX
- OKEx
- Huobi Global
- MEXC Global
- KuCoin
How to buy SHIB in New York
New York is renowned for being one of the most heavily crypto-regulated regions in the world, and local residents are often restricted from buying digital assets or investing in new projects. Moreover, any crypto company operating in the state needs to obtain a specific license, of which less than a dozen have been granted over the years.
However, there are ways to acquire SHIB as a New York state resident without breaking the law. Coinbase, for example, recently made it possible for New York residents to purchase shiba inu coin on its licensed platform.
— Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) November 5, 2021We 💙 NY
It’s official, SHIB is now available to trade, buy, sell and store on Coinbase for NY residents. pic.twitter.com/9yzjsBSMUf
Another option is to use Atomic Wallet to store ether (ETH) bought from any exchange and then convert that ETH balance to SHIB using the wallet’s non-custodial, instant exchange feature.
Editor's Note: This article does not constitute investment advice and is not intended to invite or induce investment in SHIB or any other cryptocurrency. It is meant for factual and educational purposes, with respect to certain aspects of SHIB and its associated blockchain, for those who might be interested. Cryptocurrency is a high-risk investment and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong
Andrey Sergeenkov
Andrey Sergeenkov is an independent writer in the cryptocurrency niche. As a firm supporter of blockchain technology and decentralization, he believes that the world craves such decentralization in government, society, and business.Besides CoinDesk, he also writes for Coinmarketcap, Cointelegraph, and Hackernoon, whose audience voted Andrey as the best crypto author in 2020.Andrey Sergeenkov holds BTC and ETH.