Shiba Inu kicks off 2026 with massive burn surge
SHIB kicks off to a bullish 2026 start with a positive on-chain metric.
- Bullish sign. On-chain data from Shibburn shows SHIB’s burn rate surged by 10,728.80% in the past 24 hours.
Although the broad crypto market is showing mixed price action, the Shiba Inu ecosystem appears to have kicked off 2026 to a bullish start following an aggressive surge in its network activity.
The dog-themed meme asset has recorded unusually large burn activity, which saw over a hundred million dollars worth of SHIB being destroyed in just 24 hours.
On Thursday, Jan. 1, on-chain data from Shibburn reveals that the Shiba Inu burn rate increased by over 10,728.80% in the past 24 hours.
- Deflationary surge. Roughly $172 million worth of SHIB was sent to unrecoverable wallets within a single day, marking unusually aggressive deflationary activity.
With this explosive surge in the Shiba Inu daily burn rate, about $172 million worth of SHIB tokens were sent to unrecoverable wallets over the late day.
While the regular SHIB burn activity is majorly targeted at reducing the asset’s circulating supply to boost scarcity, the Shiba Inu supply now stands at 585.29 trillion SHIB after the significant burn activity.
Further data showcased by the source shows that multiple burn transactions witnessed over the last day have contributed significantly to the surge with about 171.68 million SHIB sent to the burn address in one single transfer.
Ripple executes January XRP escrow unlock as scheduled
Ripple has unlocked 1 billion tokens on the first day of the year.
- Escrow unlock. Ripple released 1 billion XRP at the start of January 2026 in three separate tranches, according to data shared by Whale Alert.
Ripple, the San Francisco-headquartered enterprise blockchain company associated with the XRP token, has executed its scheduled monthly release for the start of the new year. A total of a billion tokens have been released in three separate tranches, according to the latest data provided by Whale Alert.
- Why it matters. As explained by Ripple CTO David Schwartz, the escrow structure limits Ripple’s ability to sell XRP freely.
Ripple used to hold roughly 60% of the total XRP supply in its own wallets. Since there were no rules, no one knew how many tokens the San Francisco-based company would sell in a given month.
Then, the company voluntarily locked 55 billion XRP into a series of cryptographically secured escrows on the ledger. These contracts were programmed to expire on the first day of every month (one by one). As noted by Ripple CTO David Schwartz, the escrow actually restricts the company’s power to sell.
This January 2026 unlock appears to have executed smoothly and “on time.” In mid-2025, Ripple started moving funds internally and “re-locking” tokens before the main unlock appeared on trackers. This reversal confused some community members, and it even fueled some conspiracy theories.
Bitcoin prints first post-halving red year
Bitcoin has recorded its first red candle during a post-halving year.
- BTC price in red. Bitcoin has recorded its first red candle in a post-halving year, breaking the historical four-year cycle pattern.
Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, has recorded its very first red candle after the halving year in history. This means that Bitcoin’s four-year cycle is over since there was no post-halving supply shock.
The “four-year cycle” theory relied on the post-halving year being the most explosive period of growth. Bitcoin used to experience enormous rallies during post-halving years (2013, 2017 and 2021). The supply shock of the halving forced price appreciation within 12-18 months.
The chart shows a clear trend of “diminishing returns.” Each subsequent green candle is smaller than the last. Due to the introduction of ETFs and institutional capital, Bitcoin has become a “macro asset” with lower volatility. It is no longer being viewed as a high-growth speculative bet.
- Bitcoin ETF effect. ETF-driven demand pulled forward liquidity into 2024, meaning the expected post-halving surge never materialized in 2025.
The “broken” cycle in 2025 was essentially foretold in early 2024. This cycle was historically unique because the flagship cryptocurrency broke its all-time high in March 2024. This happened roughly one month before the halving actually occurred.
During previous market cycles, ATHs would arrive 12-18 months after the halving events. The launch of spot ETFs is believed to be the main reason why the cycle started so early. This sucked all the liquidity out of the future. By the time 2025 arrived, the “institutional wall of money” that everyone expected had already been deployed in 2024.