In recent times, cryptocurrencies have gained a global recognition and more and more countries are declaring them as legal tender. Investors around the world have begun to treat cryptocurrencies as an asset, similar to gold, and if the current price trends are anything to go by, these digital currencies can be a very fruitful investment.
While Bitcoin continues to be the largest cryptocurrency in the world, it has ushered in a wave of new alternative currencies that hold much potential as viable investment options. As of July 2017, more than 900 cryptocurrencies are active on the internet, and the number seems to be growing each month.
Some of the most recent additions to the market include Wings, Gnosis, Zcash, Golem, and Stratis. Although Bitcoin still leads the pack, there are several other strong coins on the market whose price trends are extremely promising. Here is a list of some of the top cryptocurrencies to watch out for this year and that you should have in your cryptocurrency portfolio.
Oh, and even though Steem is not on the list, it's a given investment and a must-have in your portfolio. Invest now, you are not going to regret it.
5 Most Promising Cryptocurrencies To Invest In This Year
Ethereum – Ethereum is one of the most promising cryptocurrencies after Bitcoin and largely owes it success to the efficient team that runs the show. This cryptocurrency is a platform that enables Smart Contracts on a decentralized network, without any interference from other parties. This means zero downtime and fraud, making Ethereum a secure currency to invest in. Launched in 2015, Ethereum has seen more than 1000% growth since its inception and has a current market capital of more than $19 Billion. It is one of the top choices among investors and is definitely here to stay.
Ripple – Ripple is a real time settlement network that simplifies and speeds up international transactions. Holding a potential to make disruptive changes in the banking sector, Ripple allows banks to settle cross-border payments instantly. The unique feature of this cryptocurrency is the fact that it doesn’t require mining, which means that it needs less computing power and therefore has very low latency. One of the top contenders as far as speed of transactions is concerned, Ripple currently holds a market capital of $6 Billion.
Litecoin – Many investors claim that if Bitcoin is the gold of the world of cryptocurrencies then Litecoin is the silver. Developed in 2011 by an ex Google employee, Litecoin is based on a global payment model that is open source and is not controlled by any central agency. Litecoin works on principles similar to that of Bitcoin but has a higher rate of generation of blocks, which in turn implies that the transactions are faster. With a current market capital of more than $2 Billion, Litecoin definitely deserves a spot on the list of top 5 cryptocurrencies.
Dash – Originally named as Darkcoin, Dash works on a mastercode network that is decentralized and offers untraceable transactions. It is this increased anonymity compared to Bitcoin that has attracted a large number of investors ever since Dash’s launch in 2014. All transactions using Dash are secure and private, something that is a boon in the age of low-cost network attacks. Current market capital stands at more than $1 Billion and the future seems bright for this cryptocurrency.
Monero – Monero is yet another untraceable currency that offers private and secure transactions. This cryptocurrency is completely crowd funded and has attracted a lot of attention from cryptographers since its launch in 2014. Monero works on the concept of ring signatures, which means that each transaction bears a number of cryptographic signatures. While all these signatures appear valid, there is no way to isolate the actual participant that is included in the group of signatures. With its unique way of securing user data, Monero has garnered a market capital of $500 Million.
While the positions of these cryptocurrencies keep shifting on the charts, they are some of the strongest coins that are here to stay.
Virtual currency as an investment option is getting stronger day by day and choosing any one of these cryptocurrencies to invest your money is a decision that would reap many benefits in the future.
/R. Darell (@bitrebels)
Sources:
- https://www.alexfortin.com/top-5-crypto-currencies-invest-2016/
- https://coinmarketcap.com/
- http://www.investopedia.com/tech/6-most-important-cryptocurrencies-other-bitcoin/?lgl=rira-baseline-vertical
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cryptocurrencies
- https://cointelegraph.com/news/five-most-promising-altcoins-of-2017
Image:
- US News