Most people investing into cryptocurrencies have no idea what they are doing, because it is difficult to understand the concepts, opportunities and problems behind them. I spent the last couple of weeks reading hundreds of pages of whitepapers, I compiled all the code myself and tested it out and I coded Smart Contracts for all of them. I think it is safe to say that I have a good understanding of the subject, something 99% of wannabe-traders don’t.
Here come my 280-character reviews for the top cryptocurrencies:
Bitcoin:
„King of Cryptocurrencies “. The technology is a little behind, but the brand is incredibly strong. If scaling gets solved before the hype fades, it will be unstoppable in the short run. PoW is not ideal as it is really centralized and expensive.
Ethereum:
Currently the most used blockchain-technology with many great projects running on it. When sharding and PoS are implemented (which is supposed to happen in early 2018) it might be the most important technology of this century.
Ripple:
Not a cryptocurrency because it is by definition not decentralized. The technology behind it is a good concept, but it has barely anything to do with cryptocurrencies and the way XRP is currently used does not justify its high market-cap.
Bitcoin Cash:
A trivial attempt to solve the scaling problem of Bitcoin, but not a very promising one, because the maximum throughput is still limited by the weakest node. Second layer protocols and sharding will make Bcash unnecessary.
Cardano:
More complete version of Ethereum including features like PoS, sharding, multi-layer-infrastructure, sidechains, etc. To new for me to have a clear opinion on, time will tell how good it works.
Litecoin:
Basically, the same thing as Bitcoin with a few insignificant differences. It depends on the developers which will reach more adoption and therefore grow faster in value.
Stellar:
A hardfork of Ripple that is now slightly better. Less centralized, more focused on individuals and a better consensus algorithm. The whole system is not very deeply researched so I can’t give a clear recommendation.
NEO:
Ethereum with a bunch of extra features: The most important one is a legally-valid identification system that would enable distributed businesses to comply with laws that require identification for specific actions.
EOS:
Ethereum but a little bit more comfortable to use: Ethereum was intentionally kept as basic as possible to enable the broadest possible use cases. EOS is currently just a promise, because they have not yet launched their blockchain.
NEM:
Ethereum with fewer features: Easier for companies to integrate into already working systems but not able to run turing-complete Smart Contracts. Good for what it is trying to achieve but not as groundbreaking as Ethereum.
IOTA:
Supposedly for use in lightweight-IOT devices but fails spectacularly at doing that. One of the most painful systems to use as it barely works. The idea behind it is not as great as it seems an has some serious security flaws.
Dash:
Private payments done the dumb way: Users must trust Masternodes to keep the transactions private.
Monero:
Private payments done the smart way: Transactions are private by default using ring signatures. It is mathematically impossible to tell who sent whom money.