Below, we highlight the top cryptocurrencies illustrating different categories of digital assets. In this way, you will have an idea of the various applications that the crypto market can present.
It is worth knowing the following types of cryptocurrencies:
Bitcoin is the biggest cryptocurrency on the market, created to allow people anywhere in the world to make fast and secure transactions with more freedom and privacy . Its creator remains anonymous, known only by the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto.
As it is a 100% digital currency, Bitcoin does not have a Central Bank and its transactions are verified through a worldwide computer network, maintained by the users themselves. Therefore, we say that Bitcoin is decentralized.
Thanks to Blockchain technology, its state-of-the-art encryption system and a complex and unique code, Bitcoin manages to maintain its digital functioning without being interrupted or altered, which is why it is so secure.
The second largest cryptocurrency on the market is Ether (ETH), the currency of the Ethereum network.
Ethereum is a decentralized Blockchain for creating and executing smart contracts. These contracts are computer codes that allow you to create different tokens and decentralized applications.
On Ethereum, anyone can transact with digital currencies, and create and interact with these applications, called DApps. The network has driven the expansion of Decentralized Finance and is home to most of the DeFi cryptocurrencies, as digital currencies in this sector are known.
Tether is a type of cryptocurrency known as a stablecoin. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies backed by some other asset, such as fiat currencies or precious metals.
In the case of Tether, for every 1 USDT created, the stablecoin management company needs to have US$1 in its bank reserves, ensuring that there are the necessary resources for the currency’s investors.
Also, unlike cryptocurrencies like BTC and ETH, the price of USDT must always be equal to or as close to 1 US dollar.
Tether is the main stablecoin on the market, widely used to make it simpler for retail investors to buy the dollar and to facilitate transactions between large companies.
BNB is Blockchain’s native cryptocurrency called Binance Smart Chain (BSC). Both the cryptocurrency and its network were developed and maintained by foreign exchange Binance.
Like Ethereum, BSC is focused on offering an infrastructure for smart contracts and DApps.
Its relatively more centralized development has allowed BSC to grow rapidly, bringing greater scalability to its Blockchain. According to the project, the “semi-decentralized” model is precisely what allows BSC to offer lower transaction fees while maintaining its security.
Ripple is a platform that provides infrastructure for fast, secure and low-cost payments between people and financial institutions. XRP is the name of the native token of the XRP Ledger, as the platform is known.
XRP was created to provide liquidity for banks and financial agents, functioning as a global settlement network adopted by hundreds of companies.
Blockchain by Cardano is yet another platform to create smart contracts and DApps. Its aim is to integrate decentralized financial services and facilitate cryptocurrency transactions between people and companies. Your ADA token works as fuel for the network.
Cardano stands out for its development based on scientific research and strong technology. By implementing new features to public and open-source Blockchains, Cardano is sometimes referred to as the “third generation of cryptocurrencies”.
Solana is a decentralized Blockchain designed to offer greater scalability and facilitate the creation of DApps.
As with the Ethereum network and the other Blockchains discussed here, DApps are built on Solana through smart contracts.
But what sets Solana apart is its focus on high performance: the network is able to achieve high transaction speeds at a low cost, which makes it more scalable and more usable for users and developers than older Blockchain networks.
Polygon has its own Blockchain that is separate from the main Ethereum Blockchain but is still tied to it.
This model was created to offer a framework that allows building applications and connecting networks compatible with Ethereum, providing connection and communication between them.
In this way, Polygon is a project that contributes to the scalability of applications built on Ethereum, one of the usability problems faced by the network, which sometimes suffers from congestion due to housing so many DApps.
MATIC is the currency that serves as the basis for transactions within Polygon. Check out in the video if it is worth investing in this crypto:
TRON enables the development of projects such as games, virtual universes, applications, and protocols using Blockchain technology, with the purpose of contributing to the decentralization of the internet, based on the principles of Web 3.0 .
The platform is very much geared towards content producers, who are rewarded for their activity directly with TRX tokens. In this way, interference from centralized platforms like Meta and Youtube are removed.
These were some of the main cryptocurrencies on the market that are worth knowing if your goal is to better understand what the crypto universe can offer.
But remember that this content is not an investment recommendation. If you are interested in investing in this sector, identify your investor profile and do your own research on each project before buying a cryptocurrency.
