Forget Shiba Inu, Buy This Cryptocurrency Instead

Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) has delivered impressive returns since its launch in August 2020. The cryptocurrency has surged more than 870,000% higher since its launch in August 2020. On the other hand, the token's recent pricing momentum has been largely bearish -- and the price isn't in the neighborhood of the high it reached in 2021.

Within the last year, Shiba Inu's token price has fallen approximately 72%. While the token is much cheaper than it was 12 months ago, that doesn't necessarily mean that it's one of the best buys in the cryptocurrency space. For investors seeking big gains in the cryptocurrency arena, there's another play that stands out as a much better buy than Shiba Inu.

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XRP looks like a much better buy than Shiba Inu

Like Shiba Inu, XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) has seen some wild valuation swings over the last five years. XRP's gains of approximately 292% over the last five years look very modest compared to Shiba Inu's massive rally across the stretch. On the other hand, market adoption trends tell a very different story.

With a market cap of approximately $131.2 billion, XRP ranks as the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization (if the Tether stablecoin is excluded from the list). Meanwhile, Shiba Inu has a market capitalization of approximately $5 billion.

Despite some instances of very impressive rallies for Shiba Inu as investors flocked to potentially explosive meme coins, the token's share of the broader crypto market has been on a downward trend over the last few years. Meanwhile, XRP has generally seen reliable gains in terms of adoption -- even as cryptocurrency valuations have continued to be highly volatile.

Beyond simple adoption trends, XRP continues to look much stronger than Shiba Inu in terms of fundamentals. The XRP token was built with cross-border payments in mind, and it also has positive associations with other tech initiatives launched by Ripple Labs, the company that developed and maintains the cryptocurrency. Success for Ripple Labs' stablecoin and other tech projects could have bullish spillover effects for XRP's token price.

Meanwhile, the bullish case for Shiba Inu still largely hinges on its success in the meme coin space. Shiba Inu's ecosystem does have other components, including its Shibaverse Layer-2 network and a metaverse platform connected to the token, but these projects have yet to demonstrate strengths capable of sustainably lifting the cryptocurrency. Rather than making a long-term bet on the meme coin, investing in XRP looks like a much better play.

Keith Noonan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends XRP. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.