Shiba Inu (SHIB) has declined more than 8% in the past 24 hours as large holders capitalized on a short-lived rally to take profits, raising concerns that the meme coin could face further downside if buying pressure continues to wane.
According to CoinGecko, SHIB was trading around $0.00000466 at press time, down 8.4% from the previous day. The pullback has erased most of the gains from a rebound that briefly pushed the token to $0.00000537 before sellers regained control.
Whale activity spikes as retail traders pile in
On-chain data from Santiment reveals that large holders began distributing tokens as retail interest surged. The analytics firm noted that SHIB's social dominance climbed to 0.084%, its highest level since April, indicating that retail traders were entering the market near the local peak.
Santiment recorded 52 whale transactions exceeding $100,000 in a single day, the highest count since late March. The firm suggested that the influx of retail buying provided sufficient liquidity for large holders to reduce their positions without immediately overwhelming exchange order books.
The token's ownership structure amplifies the selling pressure. Etherscan data shows that just 0.05% of wallets control 94.64% of the supply. The burn wallet alone holds 41.04%, while major exchange wallets—including Robinhood (3.92%), Binance (3.42%), and Crypto.com (2.76%)—remain among the largest accessible holders. This concentration means that retail buying alone often struggles to absorb heavy profit-taking when whales move tokens to exchanges.
Technical momentum fades after overstretched rally
On the daily chart, SHIB's recent rally became overstretched before quickly losing steam. The token surged above the upper Bollinger Band during the breakout but has since fallen back inside the bands, signaling that the move has cooled after reaching an extreme.
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) climbed above the overbought 80 level during the rally before dropping to around 46, indicating that bullish momentum has faded significantly over the past two sessions. Trading volume spiked during the rally and remained elevated as prices retreated, suggesting that much of the activity was accompanied by profit-taking rather than sustained accumulation.
The Bollinger Band midline, currently near $0.00000495, has turned into immediate resistance. If buyers fail to reclaim that level, the lower Bollinger Band around $0.00000417 becomes the next area to watch if selling pressure persists.
The 4-hour chart shows that SHIB briefly reclaimed its short-term moving averages during the rally before sellers pushed the price lower. The token is now trading around the 50-day exponential moving average (EMA) near $0.00000460, while remaining well below the 200-day EMA around $0.00000602, indicating that the broader trend has yet to reverse.
Volume Profile Visible Range data identifies heavy historical trading activity near $0.0000060, making it a significant resistance zone should buyers attempt another recovery. An intermediate resistance level sits around $0.00000503. On the downside, the 20-day EMA near $0.00000447 offers the first layer of support. If that level fails, the recent swing-low region around $0.00000420 to $0.00000430 aligns with the lower Bollinger Band and could become the next downside target.
Broader market and fundamental headwinds
The recent weakness comes amid continued volatility in the broader cryptocurrency market. SHIB maintains a strong correlation with Bitcoin, and periods of uncertainty have historically resulted in sharper swings for high-risk meme tokens. For context, similar whale-driven selloffs have affected other tokens, such as Cardano's recent 5% plunge after whales dumped 190 million ADA.
Fundamental support for SHIB remains limited. Although the Shibarium layer-2 network was introduced to reduce circulating supply through token burns, network activity and daily burn volumes have remained relatively modest. Price movements continue to depend largely on speculative demand rather than supply contraction.
As whale selling intensifies and technical momentum weakens, SHIB's near-term outlook hinges on whether buyers can defend the $0.00000417 support level. A break below that could open the door to further losses, while a reclaim of the $0.00000495 resistance would signal renewed strength.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
