Undoubtedly, the cryptocurrency market has not been kind to traders in 2018. All but a few cryptos have gone down in market cap. Still, some have fared better than others. In this article, we’ll look at the strongest cryptocurrencies in 2018.

Best-Performing Cryptocurrencies, Criteria:

This list only includes coins in top 100 by market capitalization, thereby excluding lower-ranked altcoins.
We exclude all stablecoins pegged to another asset, such as Tether, PAX, and Dai.
We exclude any project that hasn’t been around for at least six months.
All prices sourced from CoinCodex, tracked from January 1st, and ranked by percentage fall in market capitalization.
All prices correct at time of publishing (11th December, 2018).

10. Global Utility Token (OKB) -55.74%

Global Utility Token (OKB) is the native exchange cryptocurrency for OKEx. This exchange regularly ranks in the top three by 24-hour trading volume. Some applications for OKB include the OKB trading market, new listing vote, designated merchant privileges, and more. The exchange has made a few major moves in 2018 like announcing its operations expansion to Malta in April and adding several new stablecoins in October.

9. 0x (ZRX) -55.23%

ZRX is the native cryptocurrency for 0x a project that aims to power decnetralized exchanges for just about anything. The project has even built its own decentralized exchange (DEX) called 0x OTC. One of the biggest supporting factors for the ZRX price this year was the token’s listing on Coinbase in October 2018.

8. Ravencoin (RVN) -54.46%

Ravencoin (RVN) has done a decent job of meeting technical milestones. Ravencoin utilizes a use-specific blockchain that is “designed to efficiently handle one specific function: the transfer of assets from one party to another.” In October 2018, RVN began an upward price trend, 118% sustained growth over the course of one week. This was likely due to its listing on Binance and anticipation of the mainnet launch. Still, RVN prices have fallen somewhat since that time.

7. Holo (HOT) -53.56%

Holo (HOT) hasn’t been around all that long, with its ICO only ending in April 2018. This means that this cryptocurrency, unlike many others, didn’t have have to experience the major dip that began in January 2018. The main objective of this project is to create a bridge for greater and greater decentralization and autonomy over time. Essentially, its technology aims to help centralized systems to become 100% decentralized. The project has gained some momentum, mainly due to continued discussions about the progress of a partnership with Mozilla. Although there is no info from Mozilla that says this is official, the Holo team has said there probably won’t be an official announcement until after the initial product release of Holo, which should be sometime in Q1 2019.

6. Loom Network (LOOM) -48.59%

Loom (LOOM) is designed specifically for games and social apps. The blockchain is developer-friendly in a bid to lure the most creative minds to the platform. Loom calls itself a “build your own blockchain” generator allowing developers to easily build dapps on their own sidechain of Ethereum. We all know that Ethereum has a scaling problem when it comes to running applications. Loom aims to fix that by providing a fast, scaled-up solution. The LOOM token acts as a membership pass, granting access to the suite of games and dapps.

5. Pundi X (NPXS) -46.86%

Pundi X (NPXS) is creating a blockchain-based point-of-sale solution for retail businesses. Since August 2018, the project team has already shipped 5,000 XPOS (Pundi X Point of Sale devices) to various countries throughout the globe. In October 2018, the project made a major announcement. The project, together with Dubai’s official government credit bureau and regional distribution partners, is bringing XPOS to hundreds of storefronts across the city. In November 2018, Pundi X partnered with Singapore-based Quantum Energy Asset Management (QEAM) to launch a $100-million blockchain fund, which is expected to officially launch in January 2019.

4. Binance Coin (BNB) -43.65%

Binance Coin (BNB) is the third native exchange cryptocurrency to make this list. Binance’s ability to maintain its status as the world’s largest crypto-to-crypto exchange (by trading volume) has likely supported BNB prices.The initial use-case for BNB was to pay fees on the Binance exchange, but there are bigger plans ahead. BNB is expanding to allow users to pay for goods and services, such as hotels. Most Binance employees even receive their salary (or parts of it) in BNB.A lot of momentum around BNB is also likely due to more recent announcements. In December 2018, Binance developers released a second demo video for Binance DEX. The exchange is looking to launch its DEX platform sometime in early 2019. The exchange is also developing its own blockchain called “Binance Chain”.

3. Decentraland (MANA) -42.53%

Decentraland (MANA) aims to become one of the most interesting and innovative use cases on the market. The Decentraland project team is building a VR world where users can use MANA as well as create their own 3D houses, banks, casinos, resorts, businesses, and more.Even though the Decentraland platform isn’t yet operational, there has been a good bit of progress in 2018. For example, in November 2018, the project partnered with Ripio Credit Network (RCN) to provide smart contract-based mortgages for purchasing Decentraland LAND. Axie Infinity, another popular blockchain game, also announced a partnership with Decentraland in November 2018.Decentraland just launched its second “land auction” to sell off 9,000+ parcels of virtual reality land.

2. Huobi Token (HT) -19%

Huobi Token (HT), which launched in January 2018, marks the fourth (and highest-ranked) native exchange cryptocurrency featured in this list. HT was initially created and “distributed to paid Huobi VIP members in response to China’s crypto ban and decreased trading activity”. Compared to BNB, HT is a much newer cryptocurrency. In fact, HT was modeled on the success of BNB as a native exchange token and has similar functionalities. For example, like BNB for Binance, the Huobi exchange uses HT as an option for traders wanting to decrease exchange transaction fees. The company also has regular HT buyback/burn events.

https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmTE1MRJEbMv2k8TTDTdEZhSh8HdzXoKVt2562yN5NpvAU/ode.jpg

1. ODEM (ODE) +197%

ODEM (ODE), which launched in April 2018, has done well in recent bear market months. This cryptocurrency is part of a blockchain platform that aims to change the future of education and certifications. According to the project website, the platform will be a place where “students and student representatives can create and request services for education programs. Educators and educational service providers can receive requests for program fulfillment and delivery services.” In terms of technical deliverables, the project has made a lot of progress in a short amount of time. For example, smart contracts are already live on the mainnet, and there will be a full launch sometime in Q1, 2019!

Conclusion

It’s been a rollercoaster year dominated by negativity and price crashes. However, these projects prove that hard work is going on behind the scenes. Passionate teams are building amazing things in blockchain. When the dust settles, these may be the projects that survive and shape the industry going forward.

Article was originally published in BlockExplorer News!