As of August 31, 2025, Shiba Inu (SHIB), the second-largest meme coin by market capitalization, is making waves across the globe with a flurry of whale actions that signal upcoming developments in the cryptocurrency market. Trading at $0.000012 with a market cap of $7.17 billion, SHIB’s price has been seen to fluctuate alongside key events on the chain, with large holders commonly known as whales fueling speculation around the token’s next move.
Recent data from IntoTheBlock and Santiment paint a complex picture of accumulation and distribution, hinting that SHIB’s trajectory may be at an inflexion point. With social media sentiment soaring by 42 percent week-over-week across platforms such as X, the crypto community is agog with excitement, and SHIB stands out as a name to watch in 2025’s tumultuous meme coin ecosystem.
Whale Activity: Accumulation or Distribution?
The last month has witnessed dramatic changes in the whale activity of SHIB, which presents a mixed picture of the investor sentiment. On August 5, 2025, a mind-boggling 84.9 trillion SHIB tokens were recorded on exchanges, which is a 12,887 percent increase within 30 days in large address outflows, according to AInvest. A combination of this inflow, including a whale transfer of $70 million, resulted in concerns surrounding potential selling pressure, which led to a 13.23 percent drop in value to $0.000012 during the week.
However, a counter-trend was seen by late August when one whale retracted 204.3 billion SHIB in 14 transactions over three days, according to OneSafe. This calculated accumulation, effectively pushing tokens to cold storage, signalled faith in SHIB’s long-term potential, which has aided the price in bouncing back by 2.72 percent in a single day.
Earlier in the year, whales were just as active. In July, another $70 million SHIB transfer coincided with an 11 percent price dip to $0.00001343, but the move was viewed as a long-term holding strategy, according to OneSafe. On the other hand, as reported by NewsBTC in February, the whale transactions have dropped by 79 percent to the tune of more than a million dollars, which implies a waning confidence among the largest holders.
At the end of January, the number of addresses holding at least 1 billion SHIB fell from 10,930 to 10,832, a sign of distribution, although the stabilisation around $0.0000205 offered hope for a recovery, according to BeInCrypto: The movements of whales are becoming more critical in revealing the efficiency of central banks in smoothing shocks: their actions may have triggered volatility or prepared the ground for a supply shock if accumulation continues.
Technical Indicators and Sentiment
The price movement of SHIB is the result of the balance between the forces of bullish and bearish. As per the AInvest, the token is currently securing a precarious support level at $0.000012 while the resistance level is at $0.0000125, which remains resilient. Inverted Hammer: Tradingview displays an inverted hammer pattern on August 3, suggesting a possible bullish reversal if support is upheld.
RSI at 44.9 is currently neutral after having bounced off an oversold level of 28 in January, so there is potential for upward momentum if buying pressure accumulates. However, falling daily active addresses – from 18,000 in November 2024 to 2,500 currently – warn of caution among retail investors, while whales remain enthusiastic, according to Crypto-News-Flash.
Shib’s ecosystem progress plays a vital role in preserving optimistic views within the market, with a social discussion ratio of 1.8:1 (positive to negative), definitely aiding the cryptocurrency. With the Shibarium layer-2 network expected to achieve one billion transactions by July 2025, it is improving scalability and reducing fees, which has accelerated its adoption.
Cross-chain bridges to Base and Solana, revealed in August, further incite optimism, which in turn will help stabilise prices if whale accumulation persists. Yet, a spike in token burns of 16,700 percent on July 29 didn’t drive prices higher, suggesting that burns alone aren’t enough to overcome selling pressure from large holders.
Macroeconomic and Regulatory Environment
Correlation with other cryptocurrencies: SHIB’s price movements are not independent, and it has shown strong correlation with Bitcoin, which reached $111,980 in May 2025, before encountering selling pressures. Recent geopolitical events, such as the outbreak of the US tariff situation, that led to the short-term pull-down of the market in April, affected SHIB, and SHIB fell to the lowest point of $0.000012, as we reported before.
Regulatory pressures also subside, and with increasing compliance costs (estimated at 12 to 18 percent a year), meme coins like SHIB could see their margins being squeezed. However, if the U.S. GENIUS Act promotes blockchain clarity, it could help to increase investor confidence by enabling wider crypto adoption.
It is made complicated by competition. Competitors like Maxi Doge, which have captured investors’ attention, are taking market share, contributing to SHIB’s market cap decline from the top 20 cryptocurrencies in July.
Nonetheless, SHIB’s holder retention rate of 97.25 percent highlights the strength of its community belief, according to AInvest. The interactions of whale and ecosystem development may be the key to SHIB gaining its lost competitiveness.
Analyst Forecast & Outlook
Shibo analysts provide different opinions for SHIB in 2025. Aggressive bullish expectations, as seen by TronWeekly, speculate they could rally to $0.001, a 7,145 percent profit if whales keep onboarding and retail FOMO is reignited. A breakout over the $0.000016 resistance, only 16 percent above current highs, is the trigger for this thrust.
More conservative estimates from BeInCrypto place a recovery to $0.0000298, a 29.5 percent upside, if support at $0.00001108 remains. Bearish scenarios point to a bottoming out at $0.000010 in case whale distribution is allowed to resume, especially if Bitcoin is subject to further corrections.
The most important variable is whale behaviour. Further withdrawals to cold storage, like we saw toward the end of August, will decrease the circulating supply, pushing prices higher. On the other hand, large exchange inflows, such as in early August, hold the potential for further volatility.
Analysts recommend that you look at on-chain indicators like Santiment’s Whale Transaction Count to measure momentum. On the matter of a potential return to June’s 24.3 trillion SHIB transaction activity, as per U.Today, a bullish return could be in the cards.
Conclusion
In August 2025, Shiba Inu’s whale activity has ushered in new dynamics, as accumulation and distribution patterns weave a vibrant tapestry that marks its path through volatility. While the immense exchange inflows cast doubt on selling pressure, whales’ strategic withdrawals point to a bullish undercurrent, bolstered by Shibarium’s growth and cross-chain integrations.
As SHIB continues to navigate its competitive and regulated crypto landscape, its ability to sustain support levels and capitalise on whale-driven momentum will be pivotal. With the possibility of a supply shock or a bearish pullback, SHIB continues to be a high-stakes player in the meme coin arena, ready to make headlines and investor interest in the months ahead.