A $575 Investment in Shiba-Inspired Token Skyrockets to $1.17 Million in Just 5 Days

The memecoin market continues to yield life-changing returns for those willing to take the leap. An anonymous investor bought 2.79 billion ASTEROID tokens for $575 on April 17 and sold the entire holding for 503 ETH on Tuesday, worth approximately $1.17 million, as reported by on-chain tracker Lookonchain. This five-day transaction resulted in a return of over 2,000x. ASTEROID is an Ethereum-based memecoin, dubbed 'First Shiba In Space,' inspired by a Shiba Inu drawing created by Liv Perrotto, a teenage cancer patient who passed away in January 2026 after a five-year battle with the disease. Two years prior to her passing, Perrotto sketched the dog while volunteering on SpaceX's Polaris Dawn ground support team. The design, influenced by Elon Musk's own Shiba Inu named Floki, was taken on the Polaris Dawn mission in September 2024 as the crew's zero-gravity indicator. Before her death, Perrotto had written down eight questions she hoped to ask Musk, including whether Asteroid could become SpaceX's official mascot. After her passing, her mother shared the list publicly, which was then amplified by media personality Glenn Beck on April 16. The post went viral, reaching Musk, who responded with an 'ok' to making Asteroid the official SpaceX mascot. This response sparked a surge in the token's value. ASTEROID's market capitalization soared from around $50,000 to over $20 million within hours of Musk's reply and eventually exceeded $100 million with over $100 million in 24-hour trading volume. At its peak, the token briefly entered the top 200 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. As of Wednesday morning, it trades at $0.0004435 with a market capitalization of $186.5 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $24 million. The token lacks formal endorsement from SpaceX, has no licensing arrangement, and no confirmed involvement from Musk beyond his social media responses. It is traded on Uniswap against wrapped ether, with a market capitalization of $186.5 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $24.3 million. The price has increased by 20.69% over 24 hours, 28.54% over six hours, and has risen approximately 10x from the investor's entry point on April 17, according to DEX Screener data.