Shiba Inu has entered a severe bear market, having fallen from $0.00004565 in March 2024 to $0.0000060. The meme coin's market capitalization has shrunk from over $41 billion to $3.7 billion. The Ethereum-based token faces mounting pressure as multiple metrics point toward continued weakness. Futures market data reveals a dramatic shift in trader sentiment. Open interest has plummeted to $61 million from a July peak exceeding $400 million. This decline in unfilled futures orders suggests waning institutional and retail interest. The broader cryptocurrency market experienced over $20 billion in liquidations during October. This event triggered a cascade that affected Bitcoin and alternative coins across the board. Futures Market Signals Bearish Sentiment Weighted funding rates for Shiba Inu have remained negative since February 5. These rates represent fees traders pay to maintain their positions in perpetual futures contracts. Negative funding rates indicate short sellers dominate the market. Traders holding short positions expect prices to decrease further. This dynamic creates additional downward pressure on SHIB. The persistent negative funding rate reflects a lack of bullish conviction. Long position holders have largely exited the market or reduced their exposure. Short sellers continue to profit from the declining price action. Burn Rate Collapse Compounds Price Weakness Shiba Inu's token-burning mechanism has effectively stopped functioning. The burn rate dropped over 99% on Thursday. Only 483 coins were removed from circulation in a 24-hour period. The burned tokens were valued at less than $1. This represents a negligible impact on the overall supply. The burn mechanism previously served as a deflationary tool to reduce token supply. Without significant burns, SHIB lacks a fundamental catalyst for price recovery. The collapse in burning activity reflects diminished community engagement. Fewer holders participate in voluntary burn initiatives. Shibarium, the layer-2 blockchain solution for Shiba Inu, shows similar deterioration. Total value locked has fallen to just $856,000. This metric measures assets deposited in the network's protocols.
