Following up last time's Introduction to Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies, this time around is our Nomadic Guide to Cryptocurrencies. This simply shares the major and rising blockchain-based projects, that are, or happen to have, inherent cryptocurrencies.
It's a simple article of reference, with links and some historical relevance. As with everything in the crypto world, perform your own due diligence before buying any crypto. This is only one person's perspective and suggestions.
When I began following crypto there was well under a thousand currencies - now there are nearly 6000. CoinMarketCap is a useful website for browsing through charts and history of all recorded crypto. This is merely a select list.
Bitcoin (BTC) - The granddaddy that kicked it all off, and to which every other crypto is compared. Sure, it's useful to have a solid amount in your collection. It's a strong cryptocurrency and nothing else, and the value is inherently designed to regularly increase, through "halving" (where new supply of mining is cut in half), and its finite supply. But consider the ethical questions that lurk under Bitcoin's surface: The vast amount of wasted energy to mine Bitcoin, and the increasing suspect global finance organisations loading up and manipulating the coin. Trading Bitcoin is becoming like investing in fossil fuels. More info on Bitcoin here...
Ethereum (ETH) - #2 to Bitcoin and, because of its practical applications, is projected by many to become MORE valuable than Bitcoin one day. Unlike Bitcoin - which is simply a cryptocurrency - Ethereum is a platform atop which blockchain platforms are built. More users are turning to these applications, that are (very) slowing replacing traditional web apps. Think about it - ETH is roughly 1/40 of BTC price right now, but could eventually exceed BTC value. We'll have more on strong reasons to invest in Ethereum ASAP, soon. More info on Ethereum here...
Ripple (XRP) - Ripple is one of the biggest and most established cryptocurrencies, notably its early adoption as a platform for transferring funds between major banks. It's not a real blockchain, and its ties to banks are both a positive and negative depending on your perspective about the banking industry. More about Ripple here...
DASH (DASH) - Despite rapidly dropping down the ranks, DASH Cash is one of the most established cryptocurrencies. It was originally a fork of Bitcoin that headed in new directions, such as being a convenient, fairly low cost international money transfer network. More about DASH here...
This is a mere handful of hundreds of established coins.
Tether (USDT) - Highly suspect and controversial project, contrasted by being a highly valuable resource in the crypto world. Basically USDT "tethers" itself to the value of the US Dollar. This means there is a handy digital asset that you can monitor the USD against BTC, and trade in and out of. THIS IS NOT AN INVESTMENT COIN! Tether's founders are in serious trouble for market manipulation and are heavily under investigation. They created a dodgy fake bank on a Wix site to help their cause. Beware. If Tether falls, Bitcoin could fall with it.
Bitcoin Cash, Coin, SV, etc - Offshoots and official forks of Bitcoin. Bitcoin Cash gained notoriety years ago when Cash split from Bitcoin, meaning any BTC you had magically created Cash out of thin air - for nothing. Yes, crypto is modern economic scamming.
Binance Coin (BNB) - One of the major risers from one of the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchanges. Binance is a useful platform to join - you can sign up here. Their BNB coin is useful to reduce overall fees.
Crypto.com Coin (CRO) - Similar to Binance BNB, CRO is the in-house digital asset for Crypto.com (formerly Monaco). They are an accredited crypto VISA card. This is a high riser into the crypto stratosphere, and a useful, easy app. Sign up here for a good bonus.
EOS (EOS) - A blockchain development platform with over $2B in market value, and a venture capital division. Learn more about EOS here.
Dogecoin (DOGE) - This was a joke project that copy/pasted Bitcoin's code in the early days, and found cult status. Meanwhile Dogecoin maintains a market cap of around $400m - demonstrating the absurdity of cryptocurrency. More info on Dogecoin here...
Litecoin (LTC) - Litecoin is another "open source P2P currency" that has been around since crypto's first mainstream breakthrough. There is little else particularly innovative or exciting about it. More info on Litecoin here...
As a basic guideline, if a project is wholly useful to the future of a better humanity, it has enormous value. Being the latest, flashest coin has little to no staying power. When you research a project, evaluate its history, team, morals and projected timeline. Do experts consider the project legit? What are the potential pitfalls? Any project that can answer all of these questions with little hesitation, are worth tracking.
HOLO (HOT) - Holochain is my favourite long-running project. It's a revolutionary post-blockchain platform superior to Ethereum in numerous ways. It's leaner and faster because, instead of global consensus like other blockchains, it is P2P. It's a great time to invest in Holo, while they remain in Alpha mode - the price will spike at the forthcoming Beta. Furthermore, their Holo.Host P2P hosting solution has the potential to disrupt Dropbox, Google Docs and iCloud - while paying everybody for contributing storage space. More info on Holochain here...
IOTA is a long-time project geared around distributed ledgers among Internet of Things devices. For instance, harnessing the computing power of smart fridges and washing machines. IOTA is based on Ethereum, that will greatly improve efficiency and coin value upon the forthcoming rollout of ETH 2.0. More information on IOTA here...
DeFi (Decentralised Finance) is a rising, lucrative crypto trend to follow. It's about financial applications building upon blockchains. Many are built on Ethereum, which further supports loading up on ETH more than BTC.
Power Ledger is about decentralising power control and investing in while improving low-cost renewable power access. One can buy and sell excess power. More about Power Ledger here..
Monero (XMR) is similar to Monaco/Crypto.Com in being a card-based and private digital currency. Note that it involves mining, which might not be an efficient process moving forward. More on Monero here..
Cardano (ADA) is another proof-of-stake blockchain and consistent top 10 cryptocurrency. More info on Cardano here...
Some of these will fall when more efficient methods (like Ethereum 2.0 and Holochain) further emerge. Part of the risk and opportunity of crypto is determining which projects have legs for the future.
We hope you enjoyed this week's Nomadic Guide to Cryptocurrencies and have learned something new about crypto projects. If you haven't yet signed up for various sites and services, remember to check our Beginner's Guide to Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency.
In coming episodes we'll touch on more advanced things like prices, understanding The Bounce, and how to securely store your cryptocurrency. We'll also be explaining why it's a great time to load up on Ethereum.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, please send them our way.
