How to Buy Shiba Inu Coin

Last Updated on December 24, 2023 by Kevin Groves

In terms of trading volume and market capitalisation, Shiba Inu (SHIB) is a top 15 cryptocurrency for Australians to buy. Knowing how to buy the popular meme coin with your Australian Dollars is important – we show you how to safely exchange your AUD for SHIB in this beginner’s guide.

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What Is Shiba Inu Coin?

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is a meme coin that was launched in August 2020 as a parody rather than a digital currency that provides utility. SHIB is a decentralized ERC-20 token that is hosted on the Ethereum blockchain network.

In October 2021, the price of SHIB soared ten-fold from USD$0.0000084 to USD$0.000087. By the end of October, its market capitalization was an estimated $51.4 billion. Today, the market capitalisation of the meme token places it as the 15th-ranked digital asset in the world, with a value of approximately $5.2 billion.

How To Buy Shiba inu In Australia: Full Tutorial

Follow the steps outlined below to quickly exchange your money for Shiba Inu tokens. We have used Swyftx as the example crypto exchange since it is easy to use, is regulated by the Australian government, and supports SHIB as a tradeable digital currency. You can learn by reading our Swyftx review.

Step 1 – Create an account with a crypto exchange

Using our Swyftx referral link, visit the official website and click the “Sign Up” button to start creating a new account. This will take you to the registration page, where you must enter your email address, password, and phone number. Once your information has been entered, click “Create Account” after accepting the terms and conditions.

Step 2 – Complete KYC

The Know-Your-Customer (KYC) process is a mandatory step for Australian crypto exchanges to satisfy as part of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006. This means that before any AUD funds can be deposited, you need to verify your identity.

On Swyftx, this is easily done by taking a photo of your driver’s licence or Australian passport and electronically submitting them. We were able to complete this in 3 minutes and waited about an hour (on a weekday) for email confirmation that our identity has been verified.

However, not all cryptocurrency trading platforms are registered with AUSTRAC. If you don’t want to submit your identity documents then you have the option of using a no-KYC crypto exchange. You can start trading crypto assets immediately following account creation, however, they tend to be a bit more difficult to use and cater to experienced users.

Step 3 – Fund your account with AUD

When it comes to account funding, Swyftx is among the better cryptocurrency exchanges due to its support for a wide range of payment methods. Consider CoinSpot with its wide range of supported ways if you want BPAY and cash deposits (Blueshyft) as additional funding options.

With Swyftx, you may fund your wallet in a number of ways including PayID, POLi, credit/debit cards, transfers from Australian bank accounts, and PayID. There are zero fees to deposit fiat currencies into your Swyftx wallet, with the exception of credit cards which incur an industry-standard fee of around 2%.

Choose “Deposit” from the left-hand navigation panel to start the procedure. This will open a window where Australian Dollars can be selected as the deposit asset (as indicated in the image below).

We chose bank transfers for this method since they are almost instant. The $30 minimum limit that applies to all wallet funding methods should not trouble many users. The only exception is when using a credit or debit card, where a $75 minimum is required.

The funds you transferred will appear as a ‘deposit’ in your Swyftx wallet after a short while. You can now start purchasing digital currencies.

Step 4 – Buy SHIB with cash

The design of the Swyftx user interface allows you to easily navigate and find your way around. To start buying Shiba Inu, select the ‘Trade‘ button on the left-hand navigation panel and find SHIB from the list of supported assets. SHIB is far down the list so using the search function will be faster.

It’s hard to not notice the TradingView charting that takes centre stage on the interface. If you are an astute trader then you can utilise the available drawing tools and indicators to analyse the price action of SHIB against AUD. However, clicking the “Buy” button at the top of the interface will open the buying panel.

At this point, there are a few options available to help you buy SHIB tokens.

• Instant Buy: This exchanges your Australian dollars for the appropriate cryptocurrency and transfers the funds to your wallet almost instantly.
• Trigger Orders: Enter a price at which you want Swyftx to automatically buy the cryptocurrency when using the trigger orders feature. The transaction will be carried out if the requested price and the current market price are the same.
• Recurring Orders: Also referred to as Dollar Cost Averaging, you use your funds to automatically purchase cryptocurrency at predetermined amounts and on predetermined schedules (e.g., daily, monthly). This is a beginner-friendly method of gradually building up cryptocurrency while reducing the negative consequences of price fluctuation.

All you need to do now is enter the amount of AUD to spend and hit “Review”. Once you do, Swyftx will present a summary of the transaction including the amount of AUD spent, the SHIB obtained, and the trading fees incurred. Confirming the transaction will facilitate the instant transfer of Shiba Inu into your Swyftx trading wallet. Alternatively, you can withdraw your Shiba Inu and store your cryptocurrency in a wallet.

Where Can Australians Buy Shiba Inu?

Some of the places where you can buy cryptocurrencies such as Shiba Inu in Australia include KuCoin, Crypto.com, and Binance Australia. You should choose a crypto exchange that offers a fiat gateway to deposit AUD, has low trading fees, and has strong security practices.

Should You Invest in Shiba Inu?

Shiba Inu is riskier compared to buying established coins like Ethereum and Bitcoin. Its recent listing on Binance will also increase its price volatility which is why the platform encouraged its users to trade SHIB with caution.

Despite its whitepaper highlighting that it’s an improved version of Dogecoin, DOGE tokens still remain a more stable investment. Make sure you only invest an amount that you can afford to lose because Shiba Inu is highly speculative.

Best Practices For Storing Your Shiba Inu

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is a popular meme-inspired digital asset that has gained significant attention in recent times. If you’re looking to safely store your Shiba Inu tokens, it’s essential to choose a reliable and secure crypto wallet. Here’s a summary of some of the different types of wallets you may consider.

1. Hardware Wallets – The #1 choice of Shiba Inu should be an external hardware wallet since these provide the highest level of security. Not connected to the internet and offline, your Shiba Inu is unable to be stolen from unauthorised parties that exist online. The Ledger Nano S, Ledger Nano X, and Trezor are well-known hardware wallets that support a wide range of digital currencies and NFTs including Shiba Inu. These wallets utilize strong encryption and require physical access to your device for transactions, making them highly secure.
2. Software Wallets – Software wallets are applications installed on your computer or mobile device. Typically Chrome extensions, they don’t provide the same level of security compared to hardware wallets since they are connected to the internet. Trust Wallet and MetaMask are two of the most popular software wallets to safely store SHIB tokens. Software wallet users retain control over their private keys and some even have additional security features such as 2FA and biometric authentication.
3. Mobile Wallets – Mobile wallets are smartphone applications that offer Shiba Inu holders a storage solution for their tokens. Some software wallets such as Coinomi and Trust Wallet have corresponding mobile apps where their services can be used on the go. Some have integration capabilities with decentralized exchanges (DEX) for trading Shiba Inu tokens directly from the wallet.

Is Shiba Inu Tax In Australia?

The Australian Tax Office (ATO) treats Shiba Inu (SHIB) as an asset, similar to property or shares. Whilst it is legal to buy in Australia, all purchasing, trading, and selling transaction done with Shiba Inu needs to be reported to the ATO as part of End of Financial Year reporting activities. The net financial gain from the year’s profits and losses trading Shiba Inu may be subject to Capital Gains Tax. To find out more about how cryptocurrencies are taxed in Australia, you can read our informative guide.

Frequently Asked Questions