SHIB surges 13% in a week as market cap hits $5.01bn

Shiba Inu ($SHIB) has continued to grab headlines in recent weeks as the highly anticipated layer-2 Shibarium launch draws near.

The project reached another significant milestone with SHIB experiencing a remarkable 13% surge in the past seven days, contributing over $500m to its market capitalisation. As a result, its total market cap now stands at an impressive $5.01billion.

BONE, another token that is expected to fuel transactions on Shibarium, has performed remarkably well lately after listing on Changelly. 

In the last week, it has gained 13% and is now currently trading at $1.46. 

Thanks to the sustained upward momentum, both cryptocurrencies are on CoinMarketCap’s top 10 gainers on the weekly timeframe.

While SHIB is the primary and central token of the ecosystem, BONE will similarly assume an important role in the ecosystem. It will be used to pay gas fees in Shibarium and the applications that make up the layer-2 ecosystem.

Puppyscan and Shibarium Beta Bridge launch marks significant step

The upward momentum of both tokens can be largely attributed to the imminent release of Shibarium and the success of its testnet, Puppyscan. Few weeks ago, total testnet transactions crossed the 30 million milestone and now stands at 33.8 million. Active wallets have also surpassed 17 million, indicating rising interest.

Lead developer, Shytoshi Kusama had earlier revealed in a blogpost that Shibarium will be unveiled at Blockchain Futurist Conference and ETHToronto scheduled for mid August. 

“We are proud to announce that we are the Title Sponsor of the Blockchain Futurist Conference, Eth Toronto and Eth Women! At this location, the completed Worldpaper will be exhibited, all Shib branded projects will be published and Treat will be published in detail for the first time. In addition, it is very likely that we will also discuss and release the L2 Shibarium that we have been waiting for,” he said.

As the date nears, the team has continued to ramp up development efforts. It released the Shibarium Beta Bridge last week, allowing users to publicly bridge assets to Shibarium testnet. 

Shiba team member, LucieShib tweeted: “Shibarium Beta Bridge has gone live for public testing! Be among the first to try out this revolutionary cross-chain solution. Remember, always exercise caution and verify authenticity before connecting your wallet to any website. PLEASE DO NOT USE YOUR REAL ASSETS! Only faucets #ShibariumBeta $BONE $SHIB $LEASH”