Author: Marie Gerland
Date of Publication: 21/09/2022
Cryptocurrencies have been growing rapidly for several years. Indeed, there are nowadays more than 15,000 cryptocurrencies. However, the cryptocurrency market has experienced a crisis recently. So, the market now is like a bear market. In this context, there are solid cryptocurrencies, promising cryptocurrencies or others that have disappeared. Yet we are going to focus on the first two types of cryptocurrencies. What follows is a list of the best cryptocurrencies to invest in. Bear in mind that it is rather important to choose cryptocurrency investments carefully. Let’s start!
1. Bitcoin: The market-leading cryptocurrency
Bitcoin appeared in 2009 and everyone knows it as digital gold. Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency using the blockchain technology. It is the biggest cryptocurrency worldwide. Indeed, its market capitalization reaches $450 billion. What also makes Bitcoin valuable is its rarity. However, there are 17 million Bitcoins in the world. In fact the number of Bitcoins will not exceed 21 million. Therefore, Bitcoin is a strong cryptocurrency to invest in. And it still dominates the market despite the emergence of other cryptocurrencies.
2. Ethereum: The number 2 of the best cryptocurrencies
Vitalik Buterin created Ethereum in 2015. Ethereum is based on a blockchain. In fact, it is the first blockchain that has other functions than supporting a cryptocurrency. So, Ethereum is the second cryptocurrency behind Bitcoin.
However, Ethereum has received criticism, in particular because gas fees are quite high. But, there will be an important transformation of Ethereum. At the end of 2022, Ethereum 2.0 will appear. This 2.0 version will reduce gas fees and increase the speed and volume of transactions. Moreover, Ethereum will move from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake. Perhaps, thanks to this transformation, Ethereum will surpass bitcoin. But only time will tell.
3. Binance Coin: The Binance platform cryptocurrency
First of all, Binance was one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchange platforms in 2022. More specifically, 90 million people use Binance in the world and the platform has 3.88 billion transactions per day. This success is partly because of the technologies used by Binance. In fact, Binance has launched the Binance Smart Chain and it has also created a marketplace for NFTs.
Therefore, Binance Coin takes advantage of the popularity of Binance platform. Binance Coin appeared in 2017 and has always expanded since its creation. Nowadays it has the 5th market capitalization: $50 billion.
4. Cardano: A promising cryptocurrency
The Cardano cryptocurrency was created by one of the co-founders of Ethereum in 2015. In fact, the goal was to beat and replace Ethereum. This is the reason why Cardano is an Ethereum killer. Cardano has one of the highest market capitalizations which currently reaches $16.21 billion.
Moreover, the Cardano Blockchain is reliable and effective and it aims to develop decentralized applications (DApps). DApps often use smart contracts in order to be autonomous. For example, Sundaeswap was the first decentralized application launched on Cardano. Thus, Cardano is a promising cryptocurrency based on strong technologies.
5. Solana: The emergence of new means of payment
As Cardano, Solana is an Ethereum killer too. Solana appeared in 2017 and in November 2021, Solana’s share price reached its record: $260. Its market capitalization is just above $12 billion.
The strength of Solana is the volume and the rapidity of transactions. Indeed, people can perform up to 65,000 transactions per second with Solana. Therefore, Solana is changing means of payment and works for decentralized finance.
6. Polygon: A cryptocurrency compatible with Ethereum
Polygon also appeared in 2017. This cryptocurrency is a technical achievement. In fact, Polygon uses the forces of Ethereum and it solves the problems of Ethereum. Hence, Ethereum's slowness, high gas fees and congestion are no longer problems for Polygon. Thus, Polygon isn’t an Ethereum killer as Cardano or Solana, but works with Ethereum. With this strategy, Polygon meets great success. Therefore, Polygon is now ranked at the 20th place of cryptocurrencies and its market capitalization is above $9 billion.
Year after year, cryptocurrencies are growing and people are increasingly interested in investing in cryptocurrencies. However, it is important to choose the right cryptocurrencies to invest in. This article made it to highlight strong and promising cryptocurrencies. These cryptocurrencies will continue to develop and will have to compete with the arrival of new cryptocurrencies. So, all of them are working for decentralized finance. In fact, the financial system is changing with cryptocurrencies too. Therefore, we are moving towards a system with fewer intermediaries and accessible to everyone.