If you just started venturing into the world of cryptocurrencies, you must be swamped by the different names and symbols that you have encountered. Some terminologies are even mind-boggling such as Altcoins, Blockchain, brokerage, and Binance. That’s part of the business—you have to start from scratch first until you find your way to the top.
To have a good grasp of cryptocurrency as a new investment, you have to familiarise the popular platforms in the industry. Here, you will learn the top 6 cryptocurrencies based on their market capitalisation or the value of coins currently in circulation. This will give you a head start as you explore crypto investment opportunities!
Rank #1: Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin topped the list as the most sought-after cryptocurrency in December 2021, with a market capitalisation of over $ 1.08 trillion. It was created by Satoshi Nakamoto, who also made Bitcoin (BTC) the original cryptocurrency. Bitcoin is highly secured and fraud-free, which was made possible by the technology called Blockchain and the cryptographic puzzle, which were added to the ledgers to improve the verification process. Blockchain is a ledger logging transaction tool run by BTC and is distributed across a network of thousands of computers.
In 2015, you could buy bitcoin for about $500, but this year in 2021, a growth of about 11,400% was manifested as bitcoin price rose over $57,000. Surely, Bitcoin is a great investment platform for short-term and long-term investors. It’s no wonder that Bitcoin has become widely known to the public since its release in 2009. Of course, there are plenty of altcoins that are about to outshine Bitcoin! If you wonder what they are, you can check them out at Yuan Pay Group.
Rank #2: Ethereum (ETH)
With a market capitalisation of over $557 billion, Ethereum is number two on the list and is known for being both a cryptocurrency and a blockchain platform. It is loved by the developers for a number of reasons; one is because of its smart contracts, second is its competitive security measures in transactions within wallets. Also, the platform is decentralised and transparent, meaning people can do their transactions with no third party involved.
Ethereum’s value has dramatically risen from $11 to $4,700, with an increase of over 42,000%.
Rank #3: Binance Coin (BNB)
As one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, Binance Coin has a market capitalisation of over $104 billion. It is currently the number three most successful cryptocurrencies that offer a relatively secure and flexible way to invest in and trade cryptocurrencies. You can use this cryptocurrency to trade and pay fees on Binance.
Binance was first an exchange platform but later expanded to trading, payment processing, or even booking travel arrangements. Bitcoin and Ethereum can be traded or exchanged for Binance cryptocurrency as well. In four years, Binance’s price has increased by 627,000 % from $0.10 to $628, respectively.
Rank #4: Tether (USDT)
Tether is a cryptocurrency that is considered a stablecoin as it is backed by currencies like U.S. dollars and the Euro, which keep the value equal to those mentioned denominations. With a market capitalisation of over $73 billion, it has secured its spot in the top 4 cryptocurrencies this year.
Being a stablecoin, Tether is proven to be more consistent than the other cryptocurrencies in the market, therefore, trusted even by investors who are cautious of the extreme volatility of other coins. Tether was launched as RealCoin in July 2014 and was rebranded as Tether in November by Tether LT.; It started trading in 2015.
Rank #5: Solana (SOL)
Solana was developed to aid in decentralised finance (DeFi), decentralised apps (Dapps), and smart contracts. It’s a hybrid of proof-of-stake (PoS) and proof-of-history PoH) mechanisms that helps process transactions quickly and securely. It aims to address the blockchain trilemma issue, which is scalability, security, and decentralisation.
SOL is its internal cryptocurrency. Its market capitalisation is over $64 billion. In 2021, a Bloomberg journalist described Solana as the potential-long-term opponent of Ethereum because it doesn’t only offer a speedy transaction but also lower associated costs. It was launched in 2020 with a price of $0.77. A year later, on November 30, 2021, its price was almost $213.42, gaining more than 26 500%. It is named after a beach in San Diego—Solana Beach.
Rank #6: Cardano (ADA)
Cardano’s market price is over $52 billion. Its early embrace of the proof-of-stake (PoS) validation made it remarkable. PoS is a method that expedites transaction time and decreases energy usage and environmental impact. Similar to Bitcoin, it is done by removing the competitive, problem-solving aspect of transaction verification.
Interestingly, Cardano is an open project, which means any specialist can contribute to its development. It was founded by Charles Hoskinson in 2017. Its price that year was %0.02, but as of November 30, 2021, it soared to $1.57. This is an increase of 7,850%. This shows that Cardano has grown modestly when compared with other major cryptocurrency coins.
Final Thoughts!
Choosing a cryptocurrency platform these days is very quick and easy as you can get a lot of information on the internet in just one click. These six cryptocurrencies are said to be stable and safe. If you are thinking of investing in cryptocurrency, it is wise to pick one of the platforms from the above list.
Remember, though that the value of these cryptocurrencies may go up and down anytime, the best advice is to stay patient and clever when venturing into this kind of business.
