A cryptocurrency investor’s well-timed trade in a meme coin has returned a massive 1,700-fold gain within 48 hours despite ongoing market volatility.
Details of the trade indicate that the investor turned $575 into over $1 million in roughly two days by trading Asteroid Shiba (ASTEROID).
On April 17, the trader spent $575 to purchase approximately 2.79 billion ASTEROID tokens.
By April 19, the position had grown to a value exceeding $1 million, with on-chain data showing an unrealized profit of around $1 million on the 2.78 billion tokens still held, according to the latest data from Lookonchain.
The rapid gains occurred amid a massive surge in the token’s price. ASTEROID’s market capitalization rose from under $50,000 to peaks between $160 million and $188 million within days.
Notably, the token posted gains exceeding 68,000% over one week and more than 900% in shorter intervals, while trading volume climbed into the tens of millions of dollars.
By press time, ASTEROID was trading at $0.0003734, having rallied over 66,000% in the past seven days.
Why ASTEROID is rallying
The catalyst was a viral story involving a Shiba Inu plush toy named Asteroid, designed by 15-year-old Liv Perrotto, a space enthusiast who died in January 2026 after battling cancer.
To this end, the plush had flown as the zero-gravity indicator on SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission in September 2024.
Following a social media post detailing Liv’s wish for Asteroid to become SpaceX’s official mascot, Elon Musk replied with “Will answer shortly” and later added “Ok,” which traders interpreted as positive confirmation.
The Uniswap chart for ASTEROID/WETH shows a prolonged period of low volatility and flat trading with minimal volume.
This was followed by a sudden parabolic breakout, with a steep vertical rise in price over a short timeframe on April 18–19, driven by surging buying pressure stemming from the social media hype.
Meanwhile, other traders also profited from the token’s massive surge. For instance, one trader reportedly turned about 1 ETH (roughly $2,500) into nearly $500,000 in hours.
Long-term holders who accumulated near launch saw substantial unrealized gains after months of inactivity.
Overall, ASTEROID is facing high volatility and notable price pullbacks after the initial surge.
The token has no utility beyond its meme narrative, which includes a charitable element through merchandise proceeds supporting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
