Cryptocurrencies have had an exciting year in 2021, with the extremely volatile assets reaching new highs before plummeting.
The sheer number of cryptocurrencies available, ranging from Bitcoin and Ethereum to BNB and Shiba Inu, might be daunting. However, certain businesses stood out because they had a significant market by the end of the year.
Nairametrics has highlighted the top 10 cryptocurrencies based on their market capitalization, or the total worth of all coins currently in circulation, using a cryptocurrency analysis application.
10. Avalanche; market cap – over $24 billion
Avalanche is a layer one blockchain that serves as a foundation for decentralized apps and custom blockchain networks. It is a competitor to Ethereum, intending to dethrone Ethereum as the most popular blockchain for smart contracts.
Each chain serves a specific purpose, which is in stark contrast to Bitcoin and Ethereum’s strategy of having all nodes validate all transactions.
Avalanche blockchains employ a variety of consensus techniques, depending on their intended usage. AVAX was trading at $103.26 at the time of writing, down 4.34 per cent in the previous 24 hours.
9. Terra (LUNA); market cap – over $28 billion
Terra is a blockchain protocol that powers price-stable global payment networks with fiat-pegged stable coins. Terra, according to its white paper, combines the price stability and widespread use of fiat currencies with the censorship resistance of Bitcoin (BTC) to provide quick and economical transactions.
Terra’s development began in January 2018, and the mainnet launched in April 2019. It now offers stablecoins tied to the US dollar, South Korean won, Mongolian tugrik, and the International Monetary Fund’s Special Drawing Rights basket of currencies, with more alternatives on the way. Luna’s price was $77.26 at the time of writing, up 4.18 per cent in 24 hours.
8. XRP (XRP); market cap – over $40 billion
Created by some of the same founders as Ripple, a digital technology and payment processing company, XRP can be used on that network to facilitate exchanges of different currency types, including fiat currencies and other major cryptocurrencies.
At the beginning of 2017, the price of XRP was $0.006. As of the time of writing, its price reached $0.85.
7. Cardano (ADA); market cap – Over $41 billion
Cardano is renowned for being one of the first crypto projects that use proof-of-stake validation. By removing the competitive, problem-solving part of transaction verification found in platforms like Bitcoin, this solution reduces transaction time, energy consumption, and environmental effect.
Cardano functions similarly to Ethereum in that it uses ADA, its native coin, to enable smart contracts and decentralized apps.
In comparison to other prominent crypto coins, Cardano’s ADA token has grown slowly. The price of ADA in 2017 was $0.02. Its current price is $1.216.
6. U.S. Dollar Coin (USDC); market cap – over $42 billion
Like Tether, USD Coin (USDC) is a stablecoin, meaning it’s backed by U.S. dollars and aims for a 1 USD to 1 USDC ratio. USDC is powered by Ethereum, and you can use USD Coin to complete global transactions.
5. Solana (SOL); market cap – Over $53 billion
Solana is a cryptocurrency that was created to power decentralized finance (Defi), decentralized apps (DApps), and smart contracts. It uses a hybrid proof-of-stake and proof-of-history mechanism to process transactions quickly and securely. The platform is powered by SOL, Solana’s native token.
SOL’s price was $0.77 when it was first introduced in 2020. The price was $172.70 at the time of writing, down 4.48 per cent in 24 hours.
4. Tether (USDT); market cap – over $76 billion
Tether is a stable coin, which means it is backed by fiat currencies such as the US dollar and the Euro and has a value that is theoretically equal to one of those denominations.
Tether’s value is intended to be more consistent than other cryptocurrencies, which is why it’s appreciated by investors who are frightened of other coins’ excessive volatility.
3. Binance Coin (BNB); market cap – over $85 billion
Binance Coin is a cryptocurrency that may be used to trade and pay fees on Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.
Binance Coin has grown beyond simply conducting deals on Binance’s exchange platform since its introduction in 2017. It can now be used for trade, payment processing, and even making travel reservations. It can also be exchanged or traded for other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum or Bitcoin.
It was only $0.10 in 2017; by November 30, 2021. At the time of writing this post, the price of BNB was $511.12, down 2.54% in 24 hours.
2. Ethereum (ETH); market cap – Over $488 billion
Ethereum is a favourite of programmers because of its potential applications, such as smart contracts that execute automatically when conditions are met and non-fungible tokens. Ethereum is both a cryptocurrency and a blockchain platform (NFTs).
Ethereum has also exploded in popularity. Its value increased by over 42,000% in just over five years, from around $11 to over $4,700. The price of ethereum was $3,775.52 at the time of writing this article down 2.01% within 24hours.
1. Bitcoin (BTC); market cap – over $869.678 billion
Bitcoin (BTC) is the first cryptocurrency, having been created in 2009 under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. BTC, like most cryptocurrencies, is based on a blockchain, which is a distributed ledger that logs transactions across a network of thousands of computers.
Bitcoin is maintained, secure and safe from fraudsters because updates to the distributed ledgers must be confirmed by solving a cryptographic problem, a process known as proof of work.
Bitcoin’s value has soared as it has grown in popularity. Bitcoin was trading for $46,027.78 at the time of writing, down 2.45% in 24 hours. In the previous 24 hours, the price of $103.26 has dropped 4.34%.
