A cryptocurrency is a digital currency that securely streamlines and simplifies consumer transactions online. Speculators trade these unregulated currencies, leading to sky-high prices. Bitcoin (BTC) has had some dramatic price changes in 2021, hitting almost $65,000 in April before dropping to near $50,000 by May. Since then it’s continued to seesaw back and forth. It was nearing an all-time high again when you wrote this post at roughly $66K (the actual price is hovering near approximately $6605 right
Bitcoin
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is still the world’s most popular cryptocurrency and it’s not hard to see why its current market cap is $1.1 trillion. Bitcoin’s size is growing like crazy, and it’s bigger than both Tesla and Facebook. It continues to take advantage of being the first cryptocurrency. Bitcoin is currently the most widely used digital currency. Many financial analysts view it as a good hedge against inflation because there will never be more than 21 million Bitcoin tokens in circulation.
Also read: 10 cryptocurrencies that have a better potential than Bitcoin
Ethereum
This ranking might seem surprising to some, but Ethereum is still a very practical cryptocurrency. Its market cap compared to other coins is close enough, making it an important asset for any investor. But some think that Ethereum will be the next Bitcoin. The key edge for Ethereum is its real-world utility. Its blockchain can be used in a wide range of applications and there are even smart contracts that can be created with it. Ethereum is especially good for making non-fungible tokens. Whether or not it knocks bitcoin out of its number one spot in the future, Ethereum looks set to last for the long haul.
Binance Coin
The Binance Coin is the third-most-popular digital coin on the market right now, which makes sense given that it’s a major part of the company’s business, and one of their flagship coins. BNB is the native token for Binance’s blockchain and currently has a market cap of over $96 billion. Those who make transaction fees using BNB get discounted transaction fees. Binance reduces the supply of coins on their exchanges each quarter (based on trading volume). This is called a “coin burn” and it will remove up to 50% of the total supply over time. The goal is to make digital coins more valuable.
Tether
Tether (CRYPTO: USDT) is at 4th place in terms of popularity in the cryptosphere. The market cap is around $73 billion. But when it comes to stable coins, Tether takes the top spot. All stable coins are tied in value to a given asset that they share. In Tether’s case, they share the same value as the U.S dollar. In theory, Tether is then a “crypto-dollar” that should behave similarly to its real-life counterpart when it comes to maintaining its’ value. There have been some concerns that Tether may not have enough crypto holdings to support all of its tokens. The U.S. Treasury Department recently wrote a letter to Congress warning them about the risks this poses to our economy by the coins such as Tether.
Solana
Solana is among the five most popular cryptocurrencies. At the current moment, its market cap is around $65 billion. The last year has been pretty successful for Solana, which saw an over 10,000% increase in its value. Users are drawn to it as an alternative to Ethereum – both are compatible with smart contracts. Solana is a much faster & cheaper environment for processing transactions.
Avalanche
While there are some successful examples of cryptocurrency such as Solana, there are also cryptos such as Dogecoin that have no purpose and only exist for the sake of being a meme. There are many projects that aim to unseat Ethereum, such as “Avalanche” according to the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini. A blockchain is one type of technology that is used to store information like cryptocurrency transaction history. The ledger can’t be altered and provides a decentralized and secure way to store the data. A new $220 million fund for blockchain startups has just been announced. Ethreum is currently the most popular blockchain network but there are newer options with higher transaction speeds, such as Avalanche which can process up to 4,500 transactions per second.
Axie Infinity
I think it’s safe to say that most people want a better life for themselves and their families. You can have a better life with a good internet connection and good video games skills. Some people have been able to make a living from playing games, such as in the game Axie Infinity. In this game, there are tokens that can be won and then sold for money. Lots of Filipinos turned to games during the crisis and were able to make a full-time living from it.
Samoyedcoin
The market for meme coins is volatile and unpredictable. Some might say this means it’s like gambling but I disagree – it’s more like fishing for memes! Is the meme coin ‘Samoyedcoin’ on your radar? The face of this dog is intended to be used as a lighthearted and fun ambassador for Solana. It’s similar to Dogecoin in that regard.
Fetch.ai
Fetch.ai is a decentralized machine learning platform, according to what it says on CoinBase. It’s been used largely for asset trading so far – one of their applications is Uniswap, a crypto swap trading desk that automates a lot of the process which would otherwise take up a lot of time & energy to do manually. FET is an Ethereum-based token that powers Fetch.AI. It’s gained more than 1500% in the last year and is used in real-world programs.
USDC
USD Coin (USDC) is a cryptocurrency that has been backed by the US government. This means that every USDC will always be worth $1 USD. This makes it immune to price fluctuations, which may not always be ideal for speculators. Coinbase customers can earn rewards by holding USDC. The digital currency is backed by one dollar or asset of equivalent worth and the customer’s account must be with a financial institution regulated in the US.
Must Read: INVESTING IN CRYPTOCURRENCIES? GET A CRYPTOCURRENCY WALLET