Bitcoin was the first cryptocurrency to come into existence, and in many ways, it set the stage for everything that followed. This also initiated a period of different kinds of cryptocurrency scams. Due to this, new coins have been created to dethrone Bitcoin, but none have succeeded. However, several alternative cryptocurrencies have been growing in popularity despite not reaching Bitcoin’s market cap or the total value of mined coins yet.
Top 5 Alternatives of Bitcoin Cryptocurrency
In this detailed, informative article, we’ll introduce you to 5 alternative cryptocurrencies worth investing in other than Bitcoin if you’re looking for your next big investment opportunity or want to diversify your crypto portfolio beyond BTC. The top 5 alternatives of Bitcoin cryptocurrency that you can explore are the following.
1. Litecoin (LTC)
From bitcoin, there are several other cryptocurrencies that have gained popularity among investors. Let point is one of them. It was an open-source platform that was introduced under the MIT/X11 license. Unlike its predecessor, Bitcoin, Litecoin uses a different hashing algorithm called script, which makes it more difficult to use specialised equipment (such as ASIC) for mining.
A common argument is that Litecoin’s larger volume of coins offers more possibilities for diversification than Bitcoin. It was the first cryptocurrency with a market cap of over $1 billion and is often traded with a price near $50 USD.
2. Ripple (XRP)
Ripple was developed with the aim of providing a payment network that facilitates seamless transactions across the globe. It offers the capability to send money at any time and to any location, leading to its adoption by multiple banks as settlement infrastructure technology. With Ripple, users can conduct financial transactions and make payments. Despite having a lower price compared to Bitcoin, Ripple boasts a higher market capitalization.
Out of the total 100 billion coins created thus far, there are currently 38 billion XRP coins in circulation. Since the beginning of 2017, the company has issued approximately 7 billion coins. As a result, the company will continue to retain ownership of 31% of the overall coin supply. This situation has raised concerns among some individuals regarding the concentration of coin supply within a single entity and the potential implications of such control.
3. Dash
Next comes Dash, a cryptocurrency that focuses on privacy and ease of use while still being as decentralised as possible. It’s also one of the first cryptocurrencies to implement the innovative master node system. You can earn Dash by setting up a master node or mining it with specialised mining hardware called an ASIC miner.
4. Monero (XMR)
Monero is a decentralised cryptocurrency that offers a high degree of privacy and anonymity. It’s based on the CryptoNote protocol. This cryptocurrency takes just two minutes. Monero was created in April 2014, making it one of the oldest cryptocurrencies, with some of its features, like stealth addresses, being rolled out in October 2013.
Unlike most other cryptocurrencies, Monero doesn’t have any hardcoded constants such as the total number of coins to be generated or the reward for mining a block. This makes Monero less predictable when it comes to inflation than other currencies but also means that there is no cap on the number of coins there will ever be.
5. Ethereum (ETH)
After Monero comes on the list, Ethereum; is a decentralised cryptocurrency that runs on highly-functional smart contracts. Ethereum was the second cryptocurrency after bitcoin that was introduced in the market. In terms of market capitalization, also it holds the second value in the league.
Ethereum was built as an alternative to bitcoin and currently supports the creation of custom currencies through its ERC-20 token standard. Beyond initial coin offerings, it also allows for more complex financial transactions like leveraged trading, short selling and hedging.
Ethereum has several other applications than just a transaction medium. It aids decentralized application development. In addition, started smart contracts, and Ethereum also powers non-fungible tokens. Hence from an investment perspective, Ethereum is a good option.
Wrapping it up
Finally, at the end of the day, each particular cryptocurrency has its upsides and downsides when it comes to investing in cryptocurrencies. After your sign-up, you may decide you need to spread your money across multiple coins if you want a diverse portfolio. At any rate, it pays to do your research before you invest and make sure each cryptocurrency is one you feel comfortable with. Finding different crypto communities is yet another way to gain a better insight into the crypto market.
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