Unless you live in a cave on Mars you’ve heard of Bitcoin, although you might not have a full understanding of its function. Many other cryptocurrency exist apart from Bitcoin. Coinmarketcap.com lists 100 cryptocurrencies. Countless experts conclude the number of cryptos will continue to climb.
Bitcoin has a considerable head start on the other offerings. Several cryptocurrencies also known as alt-coins[altcoins refers to all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin] may be more investment worthy as to conventional financial institutions.
As for the current situation, banks rely on a stable fiat currency to do their day to day business such as lending. One day cryptocurrency could be accepted by the financial institutions. Until then, which one will it be? As for the current situation, banks rely on a stable fiat currency to do their day to day business such as lending.
Now lets take a look at these top altcoins.
Ripple.
Ripple has a market capitalization of nearly $150 million. For comparison purposes, Bitcoin is almost $5 billion. This cryptocurrency was released in 2012 and has been making strong inroads into the banking industry and payment networks.
- A “Bitcoin Bridge” permits Ripple currency holders to make payments to Bitcoin users without ever holding Bitcoins themselves.
- Some financial experts believe that Ripple will eventually overtake Bitcoin and become the dominant digital currency.
Litecoin
Litecoin is the third largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of $137 million. Charles Lee, a former Google employee, released Litecoin in 2011. This cryptocurrency is very similar to Bitcoin.
- Litecoin offers several enhancements when compared to Bitcoin, including a higher limit on the maximum number of coins, improved user interface, and faster transaction approvals.
- Several exchanges permit transactions of Litecoin with Bitcoin users and various conventional currencies, including US dollars, Euros, and Chinese Yuan.
Ethereum
The Ethereum market is half the size of Litecoin. Ethereum is challenging to understand, even for the experts. Ethereum combines the blockchain technology of Bitcoin with a programming language. This platform permits the construction of new applications to be developed.
Dash
Dash was started in 2014 as XCoin. You may have heard of XCoin or Darkcoin before they were rebranded to the name Dash. Dash is roughly one-tenth the size of Litcoin at $14 million. There are currently 6 million Dash coins in circulation.
- Dash transactions are arguably more private than those of the previously mentioned currencies. Inputs from multiple users are needed to complete a transaction. Multiple identical outputs are also generated. These identical inputs and outputs shield the location and identity of the true parties.
Dogecoin
Dogecoin has approximately the same market capitalization as Dash. However, Dash currently has 6 million coins in circulation compared to the 102 billion coins of Dogecoin! This crypto currency started as a joke, but quickly developed a loyal following.
- Coins are produced very quickly and have very little value, roughly $0.0001 per coin.
- The Dogecoin community has been actively involved in fundraising for interesting causes, including the Jamaican Bobsled Team, a NASCAR driver, and building a well in Kenya.
- Several online exchanges exist to service those that wish to use Dogecoin.
- The cryptography technology employed is similar to that of Bitcoin and Litecoin and utilizes a private and public key system.
- There is no limit on the number of Dogecoins that can be produced. More than 5 billion coins are expected to be produced each year.
There’s more going on in the cryptocurrency world than just Bitcoin. However, Bitcoin is the oldest and most well-known cryptocurrency in existence. The current Bitcoins in circulation are worth more than all of the other cryptocurrencies combined. I personally don’t see cryptocurrencies going away any time soon, in fact they are doing the opposite and growing by leaps and bounds. My best advice is to educate yourself in the world of cryptocurrency and then make a wise decision.
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