A Shiba Inu liquidation wave wiped out about $20 million in leveraged SHIB positions within 24 hours, and the project’s own team answered by telling traders to be careful. Long positions absorbed $12.9 million of the losses, BeInCrypto reported on October 30, 2026. Yet bullish bets still outnumber bearish ones by 2.71 to 1.
Key Takeaways
- Roughly $20 million in SHIB positions were liquidated in 24 hours, with longs losing $12.9 million and shorts about $7 million.
- Futures volume of $49.3 million ran at about 4.5 times spot volume of $10.8 million, according to the Shiba Inu team.
- A net 92.07 billion SHIB moved onto exchanges in a day, a possible sign that more supply is ready to sell.
- Liquidation figures for October 28 differ sharply between sources, so the headline number should be read with care.
What happened in the Shiba Inu liquidation wave
The Shiba Inu team posted futures data alongside a short message: “Please take care of your trades. Bulls and more burns we need!” As cryptonews.net summarised it, the team’s point was that borrowed money, not outright token buying, is setting SHIB’s short-term direction. When that’s the case, even small price moves can force out leveraged traders in bulk.
The flush hit both sides. The Cryptonomist put the split at $12.9 million for longs and about $7 million for shorts, so bullish traders carried roughly two-thirds of the damage.
But the cleanup didn’t rebalance positioning. A separate cryptonews.net report puts the long-to-short ratio at 2.71 to 1 even after the liquidations. Another report gives the same ratio for OKX and warns that a price drop could force many of those longs to close. As BeInCrypto noted, each forced sale adds selling pressure, which is how one liquidation cascade can feed the next.
There’s an important caveat. COINOTAG found that SHIB liquidation figures for October 28 ranged from $36,200 on one exchange to about $20 million across sources. Given that spread, the $20 million total shouldn’t be treated as a single verified number.
Background and context
The derivatives skew is the core of the story. According to the team, SHIB futures traded $49.3 million over 24 hours while spot turnover reached only $10.8 million. Open interest stood around $37.3 million, below the $50 million level traders watch as a sign of healthy activity, cryptonews.net reported.
Exchange flows add a second signal. The team said exchanges received 324.28 billion SHIB and saw 232.21 billion withdrawn, a net inflow of about 92.07 billion tokens. Coins sitting on a trading venue can hit the order book immediately, while coins in self-custody need a transfer first. Still, BeInCrypto noted the figure is modest next to June, when whales sent 1.04 trillion SHIB to exchanges in a single day.
The call for “more burns” also needs context. A KuCoin flash note said the daily burn rate jumped 428,862% around October 28, yet only about 1.4 million SHIB were actually burned. The huge percentage came mostly from an unusually quiet previous day. Shibburn data cited by MyToken shows about 410.85 trillion SHIB, or 41.08% of the original 1 quadrillion supply, burned since launch, almost all of it in Vitalik Buterin’s May 2021 burn.
Market reaction
SHIB has been sliding all month. Memeburn put it at $0.00000593 on October 2 and $0.00000544 on October 12, about 93.7% below its 2021 high. KuCoin reported a drop to $0.00000484 on October 29, down 13.4% for the month and below the $0.000005 level analysts say it needs to reclaim.
| Date (2026) | SHIB price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| October 2 | $0.00000593 | Memeburn |
| October 12 | $0.00000544 | Memeburn |
| October 28 (daily close) | $0.000004969 | COINOTAG |
| October 29 | $0.00000484 | KuCoin |
The wider market isn’t helping. As of 11:02 UTC on October 30, CoinGecko data showed Bitcoin at $77,712 (down 3.03% in 24 hours), Ethereum at $2,246.65 (down 3.25%) and Solana at $97.10 (down 3.22%). The Crypto Fear and Greed Index read 30, or “Fear”, on the same day.
| Asset | Price (Oct 30, 11:02 UTC) | 24h change | 7d change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $77,712 | -3.03% | -4.79% |
| Ethereum (ETH) | $2,246.65 | -3.25% | -6.31% |
| BNB | $702.11 | -5.28% | -5.87% |
| Solana (SOL) | $97.10 | -3.22% | -6.71% |
For broader context on how leveraged positions unwind across the market, see our coverage of earlier market-wide liquidation events.
What to watch next after the Shiba Inu liquidation
The next exchange flow readings matter most. BeInCrypto said they’ll show whether the 92 billion SHIB that arrived on exchanges gets sold or just sits there. A second number to track is the 2.71 long-to-short ratio. If price slips further, those longs are the most exposed.
Analysts cited by KuCoin say SHIB needs to get back above $0.000005 for a rebound. Some traders pair price levels with momentum tools like the Relative Strength Index, though no indicator predicts liquidations.
The risks are plain. Memecoins are highly volatile, leveraged positions can be wiped out entirely, and assets held on exchanges carry counterparty risk. This article is information, not a recommendation to trade SHIB.
FAQ
What caused the Shiba Inu liquidation wave?
The Shiba Inu team points to leverage. Futures volume ran at about 4.5 times spot volume, and the team said that when borrowed money drives the market, even small price swings can trigger outsized liquidations. Roughly $20 million in positions were closed, with longs carrying about two-thirds of the losses, according to BeInCrypto.
Why is the SHIB long-to-short ratio a risk?
At 2.71 to 1, most leveraged traders are betting on gains. If SHIB falls, those longs could be liquidated, and each forced sale adds more selling pressure.
Do SHIB burns move the price?
Recent burns are tiny. Shibburn data showed about 2.47 million SHIB, worth around $12, burned in the 24 hours to October 23, 2026. That is a very small fraction of the remaining supply, which is why the 428,862% jump in the burn rate around October 28 says more about a quiet prior day than about real supply reduction.
Sources
- Shiba Inu Team Urges Traders to Take Care After $20 Million Liquidation Wave (BeInCrypto)
- Shiba Inu Liquidation Wave Hits $20M in 24 Hours (en.cryptonomist.ch)
- Shiba Inu liquidation wave leaves traders with $20M in losses (cryptonews.net)
- Shiba Inu (SHIB) Risks Losing $50 Million OI Threshold (cryptonews.net)
- SHIB Liquidation Data Conflicts: $20M vs $36,200 on October 28 – COINOTAG (en.coinotag.com)
- Shiba Inu Price Near $0.00000484 Amid Continued Selling Pressure (www.kucoin.com)
- Shiba Inu Burn Rate Surges 428,862% as SHIB Price Nears $0.000005 (www.kucoin.com)
- Shiba Inu Burn Tracker: How Much SHIB Has Been Burned and Where to Check – MyToken (www.mytokencap.com)
- Shiba Inu Price Prediction 2026 to 2030: Market Cap Math – Memeburn (memeburn.com)
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile; always do your own research before investing.
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