Shiba Inu’s Shibarium: A Tale of $2.4M, Tears, and a Doge in Distress 🐾💸

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What to know:

  • A flash loan attack on Shiba Inu‘s Shibarium network resulted in a $2.4 million loss, hitting investor confidence in meme tokens. 🐾🔥
  • SHIB prices have dropped over 5% in the past 24 hours, with the CoinDesk Memecoin Index falling 5%. 💸📉
  • DOGE is nursing losses as large whale transfers add to bearish sentiment. 🐋🌊

Top meme tokens traded under pressure as a multimillion dollar hack of Shiba Inu’s layer-2 network, Shibarium, dented investor confidence in joke cryptocurrencies. One might say it’s a “financial ballet” – but with more chaos and fewer tights. 🎭

On Sunday, Shibarium fell victim to a flash loan attack on its validator system, which drained about $2.4 million in ether (ETH) and SHIB. The CoinDesk Memecoin Index has dropped 6.6% in the past 24 hours. The broader market CoinDesk 20 Index is down just 2.3%. A tragedy in crypto, or a farce in finance? 🎭

The attacker borrowed 4.6 million BONE, the governance token for the Shiba Inu ecosystem, often linked to the decentralized exchange (DEX) ShibaSwap, through a flash loan to gain control of the majority of validator keys. The keys act as gatekeepers of the network, confirming transactions and ensuring security. A modern-day Robin Hood, but with worse fashion sense and more ETH. 🎩💰

With that control, the attacker was able to game the system into approving unauthorized transactions and walk away with a large amount of crypto assets from the bridge that connects Shibarium with the Ethereum blockchain. The process is akin to someone temporarily taking over a bank’s security system to approve unauthorized withdrawals. A flash loan is a loan raised with no upfront collateral and returns the borrowed assets within the same blockchain transaction. A crypto con, but with fewer handcuffs. 🕵️♂️

The Shiba inu team was able to prevent a bigger, more serious breach because the BONE tokens used to gain control were reportedly tied to validator 1 and remained locked by the staking rules. A narrow escape, or a plot twist in the making? 🐾🌀

Nevertheless, markets reacted negatively to the breach, which again underscores the perennial security issues with blockchain technology. A system so secure it’s like a digital jenga tower. 🏗️

Memecoins drop, broader market bid

SHIB fell by the most in three weeks on Sunday (UTC), losing 4% to $0.00001369, and has continued to weaken to trade recently at $0.00001359. The cryptocurrency experienced considerable volatility throughout the 23-hour trading window ended Sept. 15 at 02:00 UTC, with the aggregate range encompassing $0.000006191, a 4% oscillation from peak to trough. A rollercoaster ride for your crypto portfolio. 🎢

The session commenced with pre-dawn fragility as SHIB retreated from $0.000014156 to establish a pivotal trough of $0.000013547 at 14:00 UTC. Volume of 1.064 trillion tokens surpassed the 24-hour mean, signaling robust distribution pressure and prospective capitulation, according to CoinDesk Research’s technical analysis model. A market so nervous it’s like a tea kettle on the verge of whistling. 🫖

The BONE token, which initially doubled to over 36 cents, is now down over 2% on a 24-hour basis, trading at around 20 cents. A token so volatile it’s like a cat on a hot tin roof. 🐱🔥

According to the technical analysis model:

  • SHIB established a critical underpinning at $0.000013547 during elevated volume selling pressure exceeding 1.064 trillion tokens. A support level so shaky it’s like a chair made of spaghetti. 🍝
  • The token constructed successive higher lows and consolidation parameters between $0.000013600-$0.000013780. A dance of despair and hope. 💃🕺
  • Recovery momentum is demonstrated by ascending channel formations with sustained higher lows, indicating potential continuation towards the $0.000014000 resistance. A climb so steep it’s like Mount Doom for your wallet. 🏔️
  • Volume patterns exceeded 24-hour averages during the decline phase, confirming potential capitulation levels. A market so desperate it’s like a toddler with a juice box. 🥤
  • Terminal hour trading exhibited decisive upward momentum with 1% appreciation, confirming a breach above the resistance threshold. A victory so fleeting it’s like a firework in a thunderstorm. 🌩️

Large DOGE transfers add to bearish sentiment

Meanwhile, SHIB’s peer Dogecoin fell 4% to 27.80 cents on Sunday and has since lost further 5% to 27.36 cents, according to CoinDesk data. A price drop so dramatic it’s like a dog chasing its tail in reverse. 🐕🌀

A massive transfer of DOGE to a centralized exchange likely added to the bearish mood in the market. According to Whale Alert, crypto exchange OKX received 119,306,143 DOGE, worth over $34 million, from an unknown wallet. Such large transfers are typically associated with an intention to liquidate holdings. A whale so big it’s like a kraken with a 401(k). 🐙💸

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2025-09-15 12:39