Although Dogecoin is still the first name that comes to mind when it comes to “meme coin” in the cryptocurrency market, the data points to a completely different picture for February. Historical return data compiled from foreign sources reveal that Shiba Inu (SHIB) has a significant advantage over Dogecoin (DOGE), especially in this month. This difference is not limited to price movements alone; It shows that the two assets are now moving in different tracks in terms of investor profile, risk perception and market dynamics.
Historical Data Highlights SHIB in February
According to data shared by CryptoRank, Dogecoin showed a negative performance in February with an average return of -2.33 percent, while Shiba Inu managed to gain an average of +9.26 percent since 2021. This represents a remarkable imbalance of approximately 397 percent between the two meme coins.
Looking at the years, the picture becomes clearer. While SHIB increased by 41.3 percent in February 2024, DOGE lost approximately 39 percent of its value. In 2023, Shiba Inu closed the month positively while Dogecoin fell 16 percent. Even in a year dominated by risk aversion like 2022, SHIB increased by 20.3 percent, while DOGE decreased by 6.05 percent. This chart, repeated three years in a row, reveals that there was not a single period in February when Shiba Inu performed worse than Dogecoin.
ETF Effect and Diverging Paths in Meme Coins
One of the most important developments that accelerated the divergence in the market recently was the 21Shares Dogecoin ETF (TDOG). With the launch of the ETF, Dogecoin began to evolve into a more regulated asset favored by institutional investors, increasingly sensitive to Nasdaq flows. Grayscale products and leveraged DOGE instruments reduced volatility, making Dogecoin a “safe haven meme coin”.
Shiba Inu, on the other hand, still reflects Dogecoin’s old character: more speculative, higher risk and unregulated. The liquidity rotation seen especially after January causes investors to turn to assets that offer higher beta. Historical fractals indicate that if this trend continues, SHIB may gain an additional advantage in the 15–20 percent range in February.
In addition to this picture, the sudden volume increases seen in other meme coins such as PEPE and FLOKI in recent weeks also show that investors’ risk appetite has increased again. While institutional money entering Bitcoin spot ETFs provides balance in core assets, individual investors appear to be turning to meme coins in search of more aggressive gains. This situation is considered as another factor that supports speculative assets such as Shiba Inu to come to the fore in the short term.
As February approaches, a clear distribution of roles has emerged in the meme coin market. While Dogecoin has become a more stable investment tool thanks to ETFs and institutional interest, Shiba Inu remains in the focus of investors looking for high risk-high return, as supported by historical data. This divergence clearly shows that meme coins should no longer be considered a uniform investment class.
