10 Types of Cryptocurrencies Compared

The rise of crypto assets has given people more options when it comes to storing value. Simply defined, these are assets that exist purely in a digital state with their value coming from supply and demand rather than external market forces.¹

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They are segregated into four distinctive categories: cryptocurrencies, platform tokens, utility tokens, and transactional tokens. According to Allied Market research, cryptocurrency’s market share was valued at $1.49 billion in 2020. By 2030, this value is projected to reach $4.94 billion, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.8% from 2021.²

Due to the vast number of cryptocurrency types, we have ordered this guide according to market capitalization values – as this is generally one of the main ways to rate the value of cryptocurrencies.³

Considering the above, the top 10 cryptocurrencies are currently:

 

• 1MB block size
• Transactions take about 10 minutes to process⁵
• Token limit of 21 million with 83 percent of its tokens already in circulation⁶
• Slow processing speeds
• High energy usage
• High transaction fees
• No-counterparty assets (value determined by market dynamics)⁷
• Decentralized platform
• Concerns about scalability of this platform led to the incorporation of SegWit2x⁸ – this helps make the amount of verifiable data per block smaller and includes signature data as an extended block instead

 

• Token limit of 18 million per year
• Currently has over 119.7 million tokens in circulation¹⁰
• Is a decentralized blockchain platform
• Specializes in ’smart contracts’ that facilitate the exchange of value
• Coded programs run without third-party interference
• Users must use tokens to perform actions on the blockchain, this forces them to mainly stick to financial actions
• In February 2022, Wormhole, one of the most popular bridges linking the Ethereum and Solana blockchains, lost about $320 million in an apparent hack¹¹

 

• No limit on tokens
• Converts your digital money into traditional money¹³
• Carries counterparty risk, there is a possibility that a party can default on their contractual obligations
• Popular as traders use them as a substitute for U.S. dollars
• Tokens are designed to be stable for volatile cryptocurrency markets
• Highly traded currency
• Low transaction fees¹⁴
• It was recently involved in a controversy, where it was issuing more tether tokens than it has dollars in the bank¹⁵

 

• Launched in July 2017
• Initially based on the Ethereum network but is now the native currency of Binance’s own blockchain (the Binance chain)
• Limited to 200 million BNB tokens¹⁷
• As of September 2021, 168,137,036 are in circulation¹⁸

 

• Eligible customers can earn rewards for every USD Coin they hold
• USD Coin is able to move globally from a client’s crypto wallet to other exchanges, businesses, and people.
• Is regulated by U.S. financial institutions and commonly backed by reserved assets²⁰ (or dollar-dominated assets like Treasury securities)
• USDC generally matches the value of the U.S. dollar, without experiencing the volatility seen in non-stable coins, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum²¹

 

• Token limit of 100 billion, with current circulation sitting around 50 billion²³
• No-counterparty assets (value determined by market dynamics)
• Decentralized exchange on the XRP Ledger²⁴
• Can create customizable tokens
• Escrow feature allows a user to set a conditional exchange on the XRP Ledger, until a date or condition is met – the XRP is inaccessible
• High processing capacity
• Extremely fast transaction settlement speed of five seconds²⁵
• Uses less energy than Bitcoin, Ether, or Visa

 

• Created by start-up Terraform Labs and its co-founders Do Kwon and Daniel Shin in 2018
• Uses fiat-pegged stablecoins to leverage the benefits of cryptocurrency at the same time as taking advantage of the day-to-day price stability of fiat currencies
• Offers incentives to LUNA holders to swap LUNA and stablecoins at profitable exchange rates at their discretion, ensuring supply always matches demand
• E-commerce platforms from 10 separate countries, with a member base of 45 million²⁷
• Grew over 14,700 percent in 2021²⁸

 

• Named after Ada Lovelace, a 19th-century countess and English mathematician who is recognized as the first computer programmer
• Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson was on the team that founded Ethereum with inventor Vitalik Buterin³¹
• More sustainable than cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which makes it more environmentally friendly, faster and more secure³²
• Token maximum of 45 million ADA with a current circulation of about 31 billion³³
• Founded on peer-reviewed research and evidence-based methods³⁴

 

• 65,000 transactions a second with near-zero fees
• Claims that fast transaction speeds are achieved by forgoing decentralization
• The current total token supply is 504,095,110 SOL, with a circulating supply of 296,693,628 SOL
• No fixed maximum supply – instead a fixed inflation rate year-on-year is in place³⁶
• Grew by 12,000 percent in 2021 with a market capitalization of over $66 billion
• There are currently 260 million tokens in circulation, with a total of 489 million tokens planned for release into circulation³⁷

 

• Fast, scalable, and able to communicate with other blockchains
• People are assigned blocks to mine based on the number of tokens they hold³⁹
• 270 million tokens are currently in circulation⁴⁰
• A maximum supply of 720 million tokens exist
• In September 2021, Avalanche held a token sale that raised $230 million in funds for development⁴¹
• Operates at an internet-scale owing to its three blockchains working under one layer protocol – this increases the number of transactions exponentially⁴²
• AVAX holders can control the rate of new coin creation by voting to adjust the amount of AVAX that is paid as a reward for adding a new block to the Avalanche blockchain⁴³

The advent of blockchain technologies has led to the age of digital assets and currencies. The different types of cryptocurrencies serve to alleviate the red tape and fees associated with traditional currencies, and with financial innovations becoming more common, these continue to grow in popularity. As these digital assets evolve, the potential of this disruptive technology seems to be limitless. It’s clear that whether traditional monetary systems survive the threat of disruption or not, crypto assets are becoming global fixtures.

If you would like to gain an in-depth understanding of crypto assets and harness the potential they offer, explore the selection of fintech and blockchain courses online.