7 cryptos beyond Bitcoin set to fight for top spots in 2022

Highlights 

• Ether may surpass Bitcoin’s market cap considering the pace at which the Ethereum’s blockchain is being adopted
• Solana and Cardano are competing with Ethereum and can likely trump Binance Coin in 2022
• Dogecoin and other meme cryptos may rise further in 2022 if the frenzy continues and big names like Elon Musk remain bullish

If 2020 was the year when the cryptocurrency investment space moved into a higher gear, 2021 has so far been the year of ‘fast and furious’ nitro-fueled racing.

Now, as we move into 2022, Bitcoin retains its tag of biggest crypto by market cap. But will Bitcoin be able to fend itself off the formidable challenge mounted by altcoins? If Bitcoin was the biggest news-making crypto of 2021, altcoins like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and Ether too grabbed a lion’s share. How can the list of cryptos by market cap shape up in 2022? Let’s find out.

Considering various developments, it is likely that below cryptos will make the cut.

Also read: Can Bitcoin end 2021 with a price tag of $100,000?

Bitcoin (BTC)

There is little doubt that Bitcoin can be toppled anytime soon. BTC remains the heart of the crypto world, making nearly 44 per cent of the total market cap of cryptocurrencies.

BTC dominance is real, and it is strongly backed by fundamentals. Bitcoin is the first blockchain-based digital currency that has given investors an alternative to gold investment (though this is still debatable). As of now, the market cap of Bitcoin is over US$1.2 trillion. This is nothing but humongous. It sits at the sixth position in the list of top assets by market value. Tech giants like Facebook and world’s richest man’s venture Tesla are behind Bitcoin.

7 Cryptos beyond Bitcoin set to fight for top spots in 2022

It is very likely that Bitcoin would remain the biggest crypto in the coming days. First, the crypto has now become legal tender in at least one country. Brazil is contemplating making Bitcoin a legal tender, as per reports in the media.

Second, institutional investors are bullish on Bitcoin. If there was this SEC fear that prevented some from risking money in Bitcoin investment, the approval for first Bitcoin ETF in the US changed perspectives. Despite all the volatility in Bitcoin’s price in 2021, investors like MicroStrategy bought more of it. On its BTC bet, MicroStrategy has so far made a nearly US$4 billion profit by investing nearly US$3.1 billion.

As more institutional investors warm up to Bitcoin – Jack Dorsey claims BTC can be the ‘native currency of the internet’ – the market cap is only likely to move north.

Ethereum (ETHER)

If Bitcoin has nearly cemented its position as the biggest cryptocurrency, Ethereum has become the top blockchain network that is not easy to replace.

Year 2021 wasn’t as phenomenal for Bitcoin as it was for Ether. As of now, Bitcoin has more than doubled its price on year-to-date basis, but Ether has had multi-fold appreciation in price. From under-1000 at the start of 2021 to just shy of US$5,000 as of now, Ether has definitely made its backers rich, given they invested at the opportune time.

The success of Ether owes to Ethereum’s blockchain’s wide adoption. If ERC means Ethereum request for comment, ERC-721 means non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and ERC-20 means crypto tokens like SHIB. Over the past couple of years, Ethereum has trumped Bitcoin as the most preferred blockchain network. Much of the NFT world’s strength comes from Ethereum that serves as the site for ownership records.

As of now, Ether has a market cap of over US$500 billion. Although the price of one Ether token may not outshine one BTC, the market cap of Ether may surpass Bitcoin if blockchain’s adoption rises in 2022.

Also read: Is Bitcoin better than gold as hedge against high inflation?

Binance Coin (BNB), or Solana (SOL), or Cardano (ADA)

BNB and SOL might compete for the third position in 2022, with another blockchain Cardano (ADA) in the race as well.

Binance Coin is the token used within the Binance’s blockchain-powered world that consists of a leading crypto exchange, Binance, and a network, Binance Smart chain. Binance, regardless of the headwinds it faced this year in multiple jurisdictions, is a widely used crypto exchange. As more people from emerging economies jump onto the crypto investment bandwagon, Binance and its BNB token can gain more value.

Solana is a different game. It is a blockchain network that is allowing decentralized finance (DeFi) and DApps to be built on the platform. DeFi platforms are competing with exchanges like Coinbase to move crypto asset trading entirely to blockchain. Solana is said to have reduced the transaction time, which is one reason why its native token SOL has gained over 15,000 per cent so far in 2021.

Cardano is another blockchain platform competing with Ethereum in smart contracts space.

Also read: 7 Altcoins up over 1000% in 2021

Dogecoin (DOGE), or Shiba Inu (SHIB), or Axie Infinity (AXS)

Meme crypto tokens have been a rage in 2021. Both Dogecoin and its ‘alternative meme token’ Shiba Inu have returned well to investors.

Meme cryptos owe their popularity to tweets by Elon Musk. In one of his tweets, Musk has even admitted to holding Dogecoin, besides Bitcoin and Ether, in his portfolio. While some argue that meme cryptos lack utility, DOGE is being used in tipping on Reddit and Twitter. Utility of cryptos is a debatable issue and one can even argue that the crypto brigade in itself is so big that they make a market for use.

Axie Infinity is a blockchain-powered game, which also has NFT features. In the virtual world of Axie Infinity, gamers compete to win combats and AXS crypto find utility. Facebook’s metaverse move can be a trigger for heightened interest in Axie Infinity and other blockchain games in 2022.

Also read: Top 5 most expensive NFTs ever sold including CryptoPunks

The returns of AXS crypto so far in 2021 dwarf returns of biggies like Bitcoin and Ether. But it has a long way to travel before entering the list of top cryptos by market cap. The present market cap of AXS is over US$9 billion.

Bottom line

It can be said that last two years were a period of speculative bets on cryptocurrencies. From here on, the investment strategy will factor in the utility of any cryptocurrency either as a legal tender or as blockchain network. This new strategy will be the key factor in deciding top cryptos by market cap in 2022.