Shibtoshi discusses the challenges faced by a whale: he held $5.7 billion worth of Shiba Inu but struggled to sell much without impacting the price negatively.
The Shiba Inu whale known as Shibtoshi often works overnight and then crashes to sleep during the day. Little is known about this mysterious figure, who wears a gold-themed mask in public and is accompanied by a team of security.
In his free time, when he isn’t trading or innovating, Shibtoshi enjoys hunting and shooting. He shares various videos on X where he showcases his skills with machine guns and tanks. It’s simply his way to unwind.
He once held a stake in Shiba Inu valued over $5 billion, achieved with just 37 ETH — quite impressive for someone who doesn’t identify as a trader and has never engaged with stocks. For him, it’s all about cryptocurrency, and he’s learned to navigate the memecoin market with a gambler’s attitude and plenty of experimentation.
The potential returns in cryptocurrency can be greater, even though they come with higher volatility. My background in gambling influences my approach to crypto, especially since perpetuals emerged. It satisfied my urge to gamble while also providing a source of passive income. That said, I’ve faced significant losses at times.”
Perpetual futures are contracts that do not have a fixed expiration date, allowing traders to speculate on asset prices indefinitely.
The CEO of SquidGrow has now shifted from betting on meme tokens to developing crypto utility platforms. He is dedicated to building a product called SilentSwap.
“I am constantly looking for like-minded people in the crypto industry to assist in creating practical applications for a wider audience,” he shares with the Magazine. “If there’s a gap in the market, how do you address it? You create a solution.”
Shibtoshi, Secret Network, and SilentSwap
Shibtoshi participates in numerous conferences and has been a primary sponsor for several DeCC Days globally this year. DeCC refers to “decentralized confidential computing,” a term coined by a group of privacy-focused companies at ETHDenver last February.
DeCC encompasses various encryption methods and solutions aimed at enhancing data security, secure calculations, and verifiable computing. These include trusted execution environments, zero-knowledge proofs, multiparty computation, and fully homomorphic encryption.
Shibtoshi is developing SilentSwap on the Secret Network, which is privacy-oriented and proof-of-stake, offering programmable privacy and encrypted transactions. He is polite during interviews but careful about personal information since he prefers to remain anonymous.
Who is Shibtoshi? What is his history?
However, with a little encouragement, Shibtoshi does provide some background, recounting his first exposure to Bitcoin in 2011.
Although he had heard about crypto in 2010, he wasn’t very interested. A poker game in Las Vegas the following year sparked his interest after a friend arranged a $30,000 OTC transaction for Bitcoin to allow him to join a game.
I lost everything in that game, but I was also captivated. I returned home and read the Bitcoin white paper, which piqued my interest because it fascinated me that a bank couldn’t freeze my assets.
Shibtoshi began trading Bitcoin on LocalBitcoins and Paxful, meeting people in cafes and sometimes receiving cash-filled magazines or bank deposits. Eventually, he found a reliable OTC Bitcoin trader who would buy large quantities at a discount and sell them to him… until he transitioned into the meme whale realm. From that point forward, he didn’t need to depend on strangers and the risks that cash transactions brought.
Shibtoshi admits he missed out on the entire ICO boom. However, he did invest early in the Shiba Inu memecoin. On August 1, 2020, a friend texted him within five hours after the launch, prompting him to start dollar-cost averaging in using 37 ETH. Historical records indicate his initial investment was approximately $345 each, totaling around $12,765. Over a couple of days, he acquired 104 trillion tokens, potentially worth over $5.7 billion.
Of course, that amount isn’t liquid money, as there wasn’t enough liquidity. I knew I couldn’t sell it all at once without destabilizing the entire ecosystem.”
Shibtoshi has still been able to withdraw significant amounts by remaining strategic and seizing moments. He explains that if there’s $100 million in volume on a given day, a trader can sell into that without significantly affecting the price.
“Like other major memecoins, patience is essential to realize value. Traders recognize that selling into high volume can allow them to cash out. Essentially, it’s better to execute smaller trades to avoid negatively impacting the chart with a large sell-off.”
He offers additional useful advice for traders who don’t possess billions in memecoins to liquidate.
For instance, he recommends trading Ethereum Classic, which he claims tends to follow ETH prices but with a lag, enabling traders to capitalize on both upward and downward trends. Alternatively, he suggests monitoring the Chinese markets and leveraging their impact to inform trading choices.
“Traders often aim to catch the lows and sell at the highs, but it can fluctuate considerably. Or you might choose to simply take a chance.”
From market participation to market creation
Shibtoshi is now concentrating on becoming an entrepreneur. In 2021, his friends encouraged him to explore options beyond trading coins.
“During this period, they playfully proposed that I launch my own project. At first, I wasn’t very interested, but I gradually became more open to the idea. I attended a six-week Solidity course to learn about coding smart contracts. Motivated by my friends, I decided to start a project aimed at providing a safe space for my friends and family, eventually extending to my community.”
Being self-taught is undoubtedly a challenge Shibtoshi embraces. He initiated a meme project in June 2022 called SquidGrow, which was stealth-launched with a $25,000 market cap on the BNB Smart Chain.
“We swiftly expanded, achieving a 2,000x growth to a market cap of around $52 million within a few months, and ultimately became multichain by moving to Ethereum. Although we began as a meme token, we aspired to create a self-sustaining ecosystem supported by revenue from our utility platforms, transforming into a meme utility token. Throughout the bear market, we concentrated on developing utilities in preparation for the next bull market.”
He emphasizes that the utilities have undergone 18 distinct security audits by CertiK and two by Hacken.
“As a passionate and active supporter of cryptocurrency, my aim is to provide valuable utilities that benefit the entire space. In our relatively short two-year span, we have accomplished numerous milestones. The community stands as my proudest achievement, as I believe a solid foundation is vital for any project’s success.”
Building the community has required considerable hand-holding, and Shibtoshi strongly advocates for making himself and the other team members accessible to everyone in the community.
“Trust must be earned and never freely given.”
The name SquidGrow is inspired by the popular fictional Korean game show on Netflix, Squid Games, and the excitement surrounding EverGrow, a project he is familiar with.
Shibtoshi confesses that coding is not his strength. At this point in the conversation, he reveals that it took him six months to create the initial smart contract, which was verified before the launch date. However, a coding error meant that while tokens could be acquired, they couldn’t be sold.
“It resulted in an unintended honeypot situation. We informed our community of 88 members that we needed to pause and relaunch, which we successfully did the next day.”
When asked if he still codes, Shibtoshi admits he does small tasks but has learned the importance of hiring more skilled individuals to handle the majority of the essential coding.
“I have an investment background, but learning to code, even poorly, helps me appreciate the team and their contributions.”
While capitalizing on the memecoin phenomenon, Shibtoshi aims for SquidGrow to evolve into a self-sustaining ecosystem.
Currently, there are several utility offerings, including Inkubate, an NFT marketplace; SGS Trade, a DEX; and Knox Locker, a liquidity locker and vesting platform. At present, he is most excited about SilentSwap, a privacy-focused crosschain aggregator that is decentralized and does not require custodianship, facilitating private asset transfers.
Shibtoshi has been personally funding the project. Fees from transactions within the app directly contribute to liquidity, enabling him to maintain balanced liquidity-to-market-cap ratios. He suggests that it has yet to achieve significant success.
“In my view, most startups are not profitable in their initial years. We are laying the groundwork for the long run.”
Shibtoshi is reluctant to disclose the specific amount he has invested, but mentions that the costs for security audits have totaled around $600,000.
His financial advisors might have reservations, but the fact that the project is still operational is promising, given that around 72% of crypto projects launched during the 2020-2021 bull run have since failed, according to a report by AlphaQuest. Among the over 12,000 projects reviewed, 8,854 were deemed inactive.
Shibtoshi has attracted some prominent figures to his project, including Wendy O, who serves as an adviser and collaborates closely with the team.
He also employs a unique approach to taxes, having fulfilled his obligations over the years. Nowadays, he utilizes collateralized loans to mitigate liabilities since borrowing against his own assets is not taxable, unlike selling coins.
He has discovered a bank willing to accept Ether and Bitcoin. He exchanges a million dollars in cryptocurrency for a loan. Once he completes the repayments, he retains $750,000. Essentially, he is forfeiting 25%, but due to his tax bracket, the savings are substantial. This is his strategy to circumvent higher capital gains taxes — which is partly why governments propose unpopular measures to tax unrealized gains on ultra-wealthy individuals.
He is generally optimistic about US policy following the election. Shibtoshi holds a positive outlook on US politics after Donald Trump became president. He anticipates that the US will reclaim its position as a leader in the global crypto arena.
He appreciates the emergence of transparent, consistent, and fair regulatory frameworks for cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies. This includes clarifying what defines a security, a commodity, and a utility token, as well as setting regulations that protect consumers while fostering innovation.
Shibtoshi argues that to promote innovation, the US should introduce policies that encourage blockchain development, such as offering tax breaks for crypto-related startups and creating regulatory sandboxes for testing new technologies.
“This strategy could help draw talent and investment, positioning the US as a center for blockchain innovation. By nurturing a competitive landscape, the US can restore its leadership in the digital asset domain,” he states.
User-friendly and powerful tools are powered by the utility-memecoin SQUIDGROW. SquidGrow is an innovative Web3 platform that encompasses various product categories like DeFi and NFTs, enabling creators to mint, trade, and exhibit their digital assets securely. Furthermore, the platform intends to roll out a range of products catering to diverse Web3 users, enthusiasts, and investors.
With SquidGrow, crypto billionaire Shibtoshi aims to challenge the traditional norms in the Web3 sector. The platform already provides a variety of products and services, including a decentralized exchange and the previously mentioned NFT platform.
These offerings are built on multiple blockchain ecosystems, including Ethereum and BNB Chain. However, what distinguishes this platform is the affiliation with the Ryoshi Network, a Layer-2 network utilizing Polygon CDK’s zero-knowledge proofs. Additionally, the network employs Shiba Inu, the SHIB token, as its native gas token.
This connection is not coincidental, as Shibtoshi successfully transformed an $8,000 SHIB investment into $5.6 billion. By endorsing this network, SquidGrow enhances the value of SHIB while also providing practical utility to what originated as a meme token. The cornerstone of the SquidGrow ecosystem is the SQUIDGROW token.
Explaining SquidGrow, it is a Web3 platform featuring various products aimed at fostering innovation. Based on user interest, they aspire to develop services that benefit the community and allow users to flourish. At the time of writing, SquidGrow offers a decentralized exchange, a private trading platform, and an NFT platform.
The SquidGrow ecosystem comprises four main product pillars, each addressing specific community needs:
- SilentSwap – a cross-chain aggregator for private swaps.
- SG Swap – a decentralized exchange.
- Inkubate – an NFT marketplace.
- Knox Locker – a liquidity locker infrastructure.
SilentSwap is a robust tool that enables users to bridge and exchange tokens across different chains while ensuring privacy. This is made possible by utilizing the privacy-focused blockchain ecosystem Silent Network. SilentSwap will be non-custodial, trustless, and decentralized from the start, ensuring user privacy is protected upon launch.
SG Swap focuses on delivering quick and easy token exchange services while mitigating potential risks. The platform prioritizes security by disallowing custom token imports, meaning only vetted tokens can be accessed, thereby reducing fraud and manipulation risks by unscrupulous actors. SG Swap offers trading services on Ethereum and BNB Chain.
Inkubate is the latest product introduction in the SquidGrow ecosystem, representing an all-in-one solution for users and content creators to mint, trade, and showcase their NFT collections. The NFT marketplace currently supports Ethereum and enables trading of various notable collections like DeGods, BAYC, Azuki, and Pudgy Penguins. Additionally, the platform allows users to launch their own NFT collections, acting as a springboard for new and innovative NFT projects. Inkubate is presently in beta.
Knox Locker acts as a liquidity locker audited by Certik, ensuring that the SquidGrow ecosystem can safely manage its liquidity. Knox Locker will be a key component of the SquidGrow utility ecosystem and will be accessible for all projects to secure their liquidity. The SquidGrow ecosystem has a native utility token called SQUIDGROW, which is available on both BNB Chain and Ethereum.
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