Crypto prices and market data have always been at the core of our product – it’s what we do best. We provide unbiased cryptocurrency data for the community, whether to help you make an investment decision or check the value of your crypto assets. Crypto prices on an exchange are driven by market condition, influenced by factors like liquidity, trading pairs, offerings, and economic conditions. As exchanges may sometimes show abnormal prices, the crypto community relies on CoinGecko to track prices accurately. So the term altcoin includes all cryptocurrencies except Bitcoin and highlights the ongoing development and diversification within the field of digital assets. In this guide, we’ll explain what purpose altcoins can serve, what their advantages and disadvantages are, and what potential applications they offer to investors.
Types of Altcoins
- To break the trend bitcoin needs to begin forming highs above $98,500, which would show signs of a meaningful bullish reversal.
- Anyone considering purchasing altcoins like Ethereum, Litecoin, or Solana should take time to understand the underlying technology, the development team, and the project’s long-term goals.
- Due to their often humorous nature, meme coins are highly volatile and prone to sudden price fluctuations.
- Since almost all altcoins have lower trading volumes than Bitcoin, it may be easier for large buyers or sellers to adjust the price with their actions significantly.
As a result, we can expect to see more tokens enter the market with stronger community backing, fairer valuations, and greater potential for sustainable price appreciation, rather than immediate post-launch dumps. Once again, Ethereum remained the dominant chain, hosting projects such as Axie Infinity, CryptoPunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and numerous NFT marketplaces. The next phase was the meme coin craze, initiated by Dogecoin and amplified by Elon Musk’s tweets and Robinhood’s retail-driven surge.
Ethereum is another case with a particularly engaged community, involving users, developers, and contributors who regularly participate in forums, social media channels, and meetups. This level of involvement has supported ongoing updates and the platform’s technical evolution. While these privacy features represent significant technical progress, they also introduce ethical and regulatory challenges for the broader ecosystem. Another example is ZCash (ZEC), which employs zero-knowledge proofs to verify transactions without disclosing key details.
The influence of open-source projects on altcoins
Altcoins are a type of cryptocurrency, meaning that they can be traded directly on a cryptocurrency exchange or peer-to-peer. Traders may also choose to trade altcoins via a derivative, a financial product that takes (or ‘derives’) its value from the price of the underlying asset. Potential risks can arise from regulatory uncertainty or sudden policy changes, such as crackdowns on cryptocurrencies or stricter listing requirements. These events could restrict trading, cause delistings, or reduce market liquidity.
Tether, the largest stablecoin by market cap, is tied to the U.S. dollar; one tether will always equal one U.S. dollar. Nothing herein does or should be considered as an offer to buy or sell or solicitation to buy or invest in crypto assets or derivatives. This report is provided for information and research purposes only and should not be construed or presented as an offer or solicitation for any investment. The information provided does not constitute a prospectus or any offering and does not contain or constitute an offer to sell or solicit an offer to invest in any jurisdiction.
What are the different types of altcoins?
Altcoins can provide competition and diversity, which can help to keep the market healthy and growing. The digital age brings significant concerns about privacy in financial transactions and the storage of sensitive data. Cryptocurrencies like Monero (XMR) and ZCash (ZEC) address these concerns through strong encryption protocols. These currencies allow users to protect their financial privacy and guard against surveillance and data leaks.
Potential opportunities include short-term trading strategies, as scalp traders and day traders could benefit from price fluctuations by anticipating steep price movements. Diversification across various altcoins may help to spread risk and potentially capture returns from different sectors, such as DeFi, gaming or NFTs. Innovation and community-driven growth – some altcoins succeed by innovating and fostering active communities.
Stablecoins
Altcoins, short for alternative coins, refer to any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin (and, for some, Ethereum). In this comprehensive guide, we explore what altcoins are, their various types, and how to trade them effectively. The network is based on the Litecoin protocol and was originally created as a humorous project. The cryptocurrency aimed to build on Bitcoin’s success and attract a broader audience through its playful reference to the internet meme “Doge”. Dogecoin gained unexpected popularity, reaching a market capitalisation of approximately £290 million by August 2019. Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is the native coin of the Ethereum network.
Bitcoin is a native coin (you’ll see native coin, currency, cryptocurrency and token used interchangeably; it’s the “native” part that’s important here) because it is the currency that’s used on the Bitcoin blockchain. Since Bitcoin currently makes up less than 60% of the total crypto market cap, that means more than 40% of the crypto market’s value is made up by altcoins. These projects typically debut with significantly lower fully diluted valuations than many of their predecessors, resulting in healthier tokenomics and reduced sell pressure post-launch. Some altcoins power entire ecosystems, such as Ethereum (ETH)’s support for DeFi protocols and NFT marketplaces. Others, like stablecoins, offer a hedge against volatility by pegging their value to fiat currencies or other assets.
Many altcoins are created specifically to address the perceived limitations of existing digital assets. For example, ether—one of the best-known altcoins and the native token of the arbivex Ethereum blockchain—was first conceived in 2013 to help provide developers the means to build decentralized apps using smart contracts. However, there are also altcoins that are not derived from Bitcoin or Ethereum and instead utilize their own blockchain and consensus mechanisms built for a specific use case or community. After dominating altcoin headlines, the memecoin frenzy is showing signs of fatigue. With most gains already captured by insiders and many retail investors left holding the bag, speculative appetite is fading. As fresh capital dries up, investor focus is shifting toward tokens with real utility, stronger fundamentals, and long-term potential.
