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What are altcoins?
You’ve probably heard about altcoins (alternative coins). Their name refers to the fact that they are an alternative to Bitcoin and traditional fiat money. Launched in 2011, early altcoins were meant to improve the features of Bitcoin like transaction speed and energy efficiency. Newer altcoins, however, serve a variety of uses, depending on the developers’ objectives.
In general, altcoins function similarly to the original Bitcoin. You can send money from your digital wallet to another user’s wallet using a private key. The transactions will be permanently and openly recorded on a blockchain, so they can’t be changed or denied after the fact.
Why are altcoins on the rise?
Altcoin value is now progressively gaining traction in the cryptocurrency market, as the market recently surpassed the US$2 trillion mark. According to experts, due to the advent of altcoins such as Ripple, Polkadot, XRP, Cardano, and others, Bitcoin is losing some of its dominance in the global cryptocurrency market. In fact, Altcoins accounted for almost 40% of the global cryptocurrency market in March 2021, according to CoinMarketCap.
Investors that flock to cryptocurrencies for attractive returns believe that crypto behemoths like Bitcoin and Ethereum may not have much steam left, given how volatile Bitcoin is and how its price swings back and forth based on cryptic tweets from crypto influencers like Elon Musk. These days, investors are looking for new coins that they believe will dramatically disrupt the ecosystem. They want to invest in them right from the beginning and make profits, similar to how bitcoin and ether investors did. As a result, altcoin value has significantly increased in market capitalization.
Altcoins span a variety of types, from stablecoins to mining-based coins to staking-based coins to governance tokens. The type of an altcoin is determined by how it functions and what it is used for.
Top 10 altcoins
Here are the top 10 altcoins in the market, with values as of 21 February 2022.
- Ethereum (ETH)
The first on our list of top 10 altcoins is Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. Found in 2013 by Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain with smart contract functionality, second only to Bitcoin in market capitalization. The platform’s native cryptocurrency is Ether. Ethereum’s purpose is to develop a decentralized suite of financial products that anybody in the world, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, or beliefs, can freely use.
ETH altcoin price Dollar: $2,684.61
Market Cap: $321,268,291,187
ETH altcoin price INR: ₹2,10,655.9
- Cardano (ADA)
Based on peer-reviewed research, Cardano is the first proof-of-stake blockchain platform. Using cutting-edge technologies, decentralized applications, systems, and communities are created with unrivaled security and long-term viability. Hoskinson, one of the five original founders of Ethereum, was a co-founder of Cardano.
ADA altcoin price Dollar: $0.9417
Market Cap: $31,666,757,381
ADA altcoin price INR: ₹74.1860
- Tether (USDT)
Tether comes third in the list of top 10 altcoins and is a cryptocurrency whose price is directly linked to the price of the US dollar. Since Tether was created in order to always be worth $1, it is referred to as a stablecoin. Tether and other stablecoins aim to smooth out price fluctuations in order to attract users who might otherwise be wary of digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, which have endured repeated episodes of extreme volatility.
USDT altcoin price Dollar: $1.00
Market Cap: $79,082,406,086
USDT altcoin price INR: ₹78.91
- Binance Coin (BNB)
Binance Coin is a utility cryptocurrency that can be used on the Binance exchange to cover trading costs. Those that use the token to pay for the exchange can trade at a discounted rate. The coin is limited to 200 million tokens and runs on the Ethereum network using the standard ERC 20 protocol.
BNB altcoin price Dollar: $368.95
Market Cap: $60,926,113,657
BNB altcoin price INR: ₹29,086.00
- XRP (XRP)
XRP, which was founded by some of the same people as Ripple, a digital technology and payment processing company, can be used on that network to ease currency transfers. XRP is essentially a digital currency that serves as a bridge between different currencies. It makes no distinction between fiat and cryptocurrencies, making it simple to trade one currency for another.
XRP altcoin price Dollar: $0.769
Market Cap: $36,875,155,961
XRP altcoin price INR: ₹60.52
- Solana (SOL)
Solana is the fastest blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem, with over 400 projects, including DeFi, NFTs, and more. It permits peer-to-peer transactions with its internal cryptocurrency, SOL, and claims to support 50,000 transactions per second.
SOL altcoin price Dollar: $88.76
Market Cap: $28,383,724,544
SOL altcoin price INR: ₹7,000.01
- Polkadot (DOT)
Polkadot is a one-of-a-kind proof-of-stake crypto that aims to provide interoperability between different blockchains. As a result of its protocol, permissioned and permissionless blockchains can collaborate under a single roof, as well as oracles. Since Polkadot’s inception in 2020, this integration property has sparked significant growth which may place it on the top of the top 10 altcoins list very soon.
DOT altcoin price Dollar: $16.58
Market Cap: $16,363,108,451
DOT altcoin price INR: ₹1,306.60
- USD Coin (USDC)
USD Coin is a digital stablecoin based on the Ethereum, Stellar, Algorand, Solana, Tron blockchains, and the Hedera Hashgraph system. It is pegged to the US dollar. USDC, like Tether, aims for a 1 USD to 1 USDC ratio.
USDC altcoin price Dollar: $1.00
Market Cap: $52,615,280,478
USDC altcoin price INR: ₹78.51
- Dogecoin (DOGE)
Dogecoin was famously established as a joke in 2013, but it quickly became a popular cryptocurrency choice because of a committed community and inventive memes. There is no limit to the number of Dogecoins that can be issued, making the cryptocurrency susceptible to depreciation as the supply grows.
DOGE altcoin price Dollar: $0.1353
Market Cap: $17,952,658,346
DOGE altcoin price INR: ₹10.6134
- Avalanche (AVAX)
Finally, the last one on the top 10 altcoins list is Avalanche; Avalanche is the fastest smart contract platform in the blockchain industry. On 21 September 2020 Avalanche became live on the mainnet. Since then, the platform has secured over 100 projects, 1,000+ validators, and over 600,000 members.
AVAX altcoin price Dollar: $77.01
Market Cap: $18,594,874,203
AVAX altcoin price INR: ₹5,954.113
(all $ figures obtained from CoinMarketCap on 21 February 2022)
(all INR figures obtained from WazirX on 21 February 2022)
Other than these top 10 altcoins, the crypto market also consists of over 10,000 other altcoins. Certainly, over the last decade, these altcoins have come a long way and proving themselves to be more than just an alternative to Bitcoin.
Future scope of altcoins
Altcoins have a lot of potential in them, and in the future, they may well take over the crypto market as Bitcoin loses its dominance and altcoin value skyrockets. Here are a few reasons why the future scope of altcoins will continue to increase.
- Increased scalability
Compared to Bitcoin, altcoins have much better scalability. One of the most significant characteristics of cryptocurrencies is scalability because the higher the scalability, the better the currency’s growth rate. Scalability essentially refers to a network’s ability to handle a large number of transactions in a busy environment.
- Reduced prices
The best thing about altcoins is that they are less expensive than Bitcoin. Bitcoin’s price is so high that small and medium-sized investors cannot participate actively in the market. As a result, altcoins give such investors a better chance to invest in the crypto market.
- Potential for more profits
Experts predict that the price of Bitcoin will further slide, causing the price of other altcoins to rise (such as Ethereum). As a result, investors are switching from Bitcoin to altcoins to gain money.
Trade altcoins with WazirX
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Frequently Asked Questions
What Is Bitcoin And How Does It Work?
Bitcoin is decentralized digital money that may be bought, sold, and exchanged without an intermediary such as a bank. Bitcoin is based on a blockchain that is considered to be a distributed digital ledger. As the name suggests, blockchain is a linked database made up of blocks that store information about each transaction, such as the date and time, total amount, buyer and seller, and a unique identifier for each exchange. Entries are linked in chronological order to form a digital blockchain
Is Bitcoin Trading Is Legal In India?
In 2020, the Supreme Court of India lifted the RBI’s restrictions on cryptocurrencies. According to the Supreme Court, the existence of Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency is unregulated but not unlawful. The verdict has greatly aided the world of digital money in the country. To put it another way, investing in Bitcoin is perfectly legal, and you may do so through various apps and traders.
What Is Meant By Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a digital currency that was initially released in January 2009. It is based on ideas offered by Satoshi Nakamoto, a mysterious and pseudonymous figure, in a whitepaper. The name of the person or individuals who invented technology has not been revealed. Bitcoin promises lower transaction fees than other online payment systems, and unlike government-issued currencies, it is decentralized.
What Is Bitcoin Used For?
Bitcoin was created as a means of sending money over the internet. The digital currency was designed to be a non-centralized alternative payment system that could be used in the same way as traditional currencies. Bitcoin is being used by an increasing number of businesses and individuals. This includes establishments such as restaurants, apartments, and law firms.
How Much Is 1 Bitcoin Worth Today?
Check out the current price of Bitcoin on the WazirX exchange. Bitcoin's value is primarily determined by its supply and demand in the market. Other elements have an impact on its worth. Its intrinsic value can also be calculated by calculating the average marginal cost of producing a Bitcoin at any given time, based on the block reward, electricity price, mining hardware energy efficiency, and mining difficulty.
How To Invest In Bitcoin?
Bitcoin may be invested in two ways: through mining or exchanges. Bitcoin mining is carried out by high-powered computers that solve challenging computational arithmetic problems that are too difficult to complete by hand and complex enough to tax even the most powerful computers. WazirX, a Bitcoin exchange, is another alternative.
How To Make Bitcoin?
Bitcoin mining is not just the process of putting new Bitcoins into circulation, but it is also an essential part of the blockchain ledger's upkeep and development. It is carried out with the assistance of highly advanced computers that answer challenging computational math problems. Miners are rewarded for their efforts as auditors. They are in charge of ensuring that Bitcoin transactions are legitimate. Satoshi Nakamoto, who is the founder of Bitcoin, innovated this standard for keeping Bitcoin users ethical. Miners help to prevent the "double-spending problem" by confirming transactions.
Is Bitcoin Mining Free?
Bitcoin mining isn't free, but it can be tried on a budget. Bitcoin mining is an essential part of the blockchain ledger's upkeep and development and the act of issuing new Bitcoins. It is accomplished by the use of cutting-edge computers that tackle complicated computational arithmetic problems. The effort of auditor miners is rewarded. They're in charge of ensuring that Bitcoin transactions go off without a fuss and that they're legal.
Is Bitcoin Legal In India?
In India, Bitcoin is not illegal. Because of cryptocurrency's rapid evolution, policymakers and regulators seemed to have recognized the chance to accept the new technology early. From the infamous 'RBI ban' in 2018 to reports of an impending bill banning cryptos in 2021 that has yet to develop, India has seen its fair share of ups and downs when it comes to Bitcoin regulation. Last year, the Supreme Court Of India approved the use of Bitcoin throughout the country. According to the Supreme Court, the existence of Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency is unregulated but not unlawful.
Is Bitcoin A Good Investment For The Future?
Some investors are afraid of the risks or devastation, but others are very eager to pursue the possibility of profit from a Bitcoin investment. A Bitcoin investment is similar to stock investing, except it can be more volatile.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is currently unregulated. Kindly ensure that you undertake sufficient risk assessment when trading cryptocurrencies as they are often subject to high price volatility. The information provided in this section doesn't represent any investment advice or WazirX's official position. WazirX reserves the right in its sole discretion to amend or change this blog post at any time and for any reasons without prior notice.
