Fantasies of “Shibarium” are Nearing Fulfillment. Wait for the Memecoins Rally.

Cryptocurrencies associated with Shiba Inu, a digital asset originally based on an Internet joke, performed well as the prospect of a broader blockchain universe associated with these tokens became closer to reality.

Shiba Inu is a so-called memecoin, originally launched primarily as an Internet joke. The token, the 15th largest cryptocurrency, was named after Dogecoin, another memecoin, an Internet meme game involving the dog Shiba Inu.

Shiba Inu, Dogecoin, and many other smaller altcoins often follow the price of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in trading and sometimes deviate from the norm when, for example, Elon Musk tweets about them.

Recently, Shiba Inu’s chances have increased significantly, as developers backing the currency have announced intentions to create a second-tier blockchain that will be built on top of the Ethereum network and make meme coins much more than just a joke.

The “Shibarium,” which will significantly expand the Shiba Inu ecosystem with the namesake cryptocurrency as well as lesser peer tokens dubbed Bone and Leash, was unveiled by the developers in January. Shiba Inu, Bone, and Leash are three protocols that the Shibarium will utilize to support the metaverse, online gaming, and Web 3. Bone serves as the network’s “native token” and is used to fund blockchain transactions.

The latest news came late Tuesday when the developers of Shiba Inu announced on Twitter that the first public beta test of Shibarium would launch this week.

Shiba Inu initially rose sharply but then fell with other cryptocurrencies on Wednesday, though it is still ahead of bitcoin. In 24 hours, Shiba Inu fell less than 0.5% compared to Bitcoin’s 1.5% decline.

Digital assets fell after the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the S&P 500 index had its worst day in two weeks on Tuesday amid investor fears of higher interest rates following remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

But, the other Shibarium-connected tokens, Bone and Leash, were flying. Leash increased by 9%, and Bone increased by 19% during the last day, bringing their combined market capitalization to almost $475 million.