10 most bought cryptocurrencies of 2021

Highlights

• The global cryptocurrency market capitalisation crossed US $2.06 Trillion for the first time in three months.
• Driven by the increase in prices of major altcoins, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano and XRP.
• The global crypto market cap has nearly doubled from level seen in mid-July, when at point it fall to around $1.2 trillion.
• Bitcoin, Ether, Binance coin, Cardano, Ripple XRP, and others are among the most purchased cryptocurrencies in 2021.

The global cryptocurrency market capitalisation hit $2.06 trillion (£1.4 trillion) for the first time in nearly three months this week, driven by a surge in major altcoins such as bitcoins, XRP, Dogecoin, Ether and Cardano.

The prices surge came despite the market failing to secure a change to tax reporting rules in the US’s infrastructure bill.

According to CoinMarketCap, bitcoin was trading at US $46,899.45 with a 24-hour trading volume of with a 24-hour trading volume of $36,36,60,50,646. The leading cryptocurrency is up 5.12% in the last 24 hours and has a live market cap of US $881.31 billion. It had hit highest levels since mid-May, climbing to US $48,000 earlier on in the session, however, it is still well below levels seen earlier in the year, when prices increased to its all-time high at US $63,000.

Earlier this week, Ethereum and Cardano prices had witnessed a spike of around 11% and 53%, respectively.

The rally continued in Friday’s session, Ethereum prices were up by Ethereum is up 6.35%         at US $3,192.72 with market capitalisation of US $374.47 billion and Cardano prices too were up by 2.07% at US $2.48 with a market capitalisation of US $79.81 billion.

While XRP and Dogecoin prices are doing well in Friday’s trading session with gains of 9.26% and 6.07% respectively, Tether was down by 0.01%. The global crypto market capitalisation has nearly doubled since mid-July level, when at point it falls to around $1.2 trillion.

ALSO READ: Will Walmart start accepting Crypto?

According to CoinMarketCap, there are more than 10,000 different cryptocurrency  in circulations and the market has taken a stable place in the trading market.  

A lot more people are interested in buying cryptocurrencies, so here are the 10 most bought cryptocurrencies in 2021.

1. Bitcoin (BTC)

Market cap: $881.31B

Bitcoin was introduced in 2009 after some failed attempts to create online currencies with ledgers secured by encryption. The coin was floated by someone called Satoshi Nakamoto, who literally started the cryptocurrency movement.

Similar to other cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin runs on a blockchain, which is a public ledger of all transactions distributed across a network of thousands of computers. The additions to the distributed ledgers must be verified by solving a mathematical puzzle.

Fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies are somewhat similar when it comes to payment since they both were designed to be used as a medium of exchange, but crypto have liquidity issues as they are still not so popular. However, it uses an online ledger with strong cryptography to assured online transactions from any fraud. 

Bitcoin is still the most popular cryptocurrencies and its price movement has a strong impact on other cryptocurrencies.

ALSO READ: 5 major UK banks and their investment in crypto and blockchain

2. Ethereum (ETH)

Market cap: $375.306B

Ethereum also known as Ether is an open-source that means it uses blockchain technology to enable smart contracts and cryptocurrency exchange securely without a third party. It is the second most popular cryptocurrency. Bitcoin is different from Ethereum as it allows developers to deploy all kinds of decentralized apps. Though by popularity Bitcoin tops the chart, but looking at ethereum’s aggressive growth, experts it will easily overtake bitcoins usage soon. Ethereum is a software platform that runs on a blockchain that is used to develop applications; users can interact with the platform using ether. It is predominantly used by developers, but there are people who also invest in the crypto for its potential to be worth more over time.

3. Cardano (ADA)

Market cap: $79.63B

Founded in 2015 by Ethereum co-founder Charles Hoskinson, Cardano is a public blockchain platform. It is open-source and enables decentralized applications, similar to Ethereum, with consensus achieved using proof of stake.

 Cardano is popular for its adoption of proof-of-stake validation, which advances transaction time and decreases energy usage and environmental impact by removing the competitive, problem-solving aspect of transaction verification present in platforms like Bitcoin. 

4. Binance Coin (BNB)

Market cap: $71.37B

Launched in 2017, issued by Binance exchange, the Binance Coin is a form of cryptocurrency that can be used to trade and pay fees on Binance, one of the leading crypto exchanges globally. The maximum limit of Binance coins can be created is 200 million BNB tokens.

However, it is now used for trading, booking travel or even payment processing. It can also be exchanged for other forms of cryptocurrency. 

ALSO READ: Where Do I Invest? Crypto or Property?

5. Tether (USDT)

Market cap: $64.20B

Tether is a stablecoin, as it is backed by fiat currencies such as US Dollars and Euro and hypothetically keeps a value equal to one of those denominations.

Its token is issued by Tether Limited, which in turn is controlled by the owner of Bitfinex. For each tether issued, it was originally planned to always be worth US $1.00, maintaining US $1.00 in reserves.

6. XRP (XRP)

Market cap: $57.37B

XRP can be used on that network to facilitate cross-border transfer of different currency types, including other major cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies.

It was created by the same founders as Ripple, a digital technology and payment processing company and it is closely connected to and supported by several banks.

The number of transactions using Ripple’s platform has increased rapidly over the years and it may be possible that it will become part of the traditional financial system.

ALSO READ: Crypto market holds fort after riding into US$2tr cap as Bitcoin leads

7. Dogecoin (DOGE)

Market cap: $41.64B

Started as a joke in 2013 by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. Dogecoin rapidly became a prominent cryptocurrency option, some consider it a legitimate investment prospects.

Unlike many other cryptocurrencies, there is no maximum limit on the creation of Dogecoins, which makes it susceptible to devaluation as supply increases.

8. USD Coins (USDC)

Market cap: $27.14B

USD coins are similar to Tether, as it is a stablecoin backed by fiat currencies and powered by Ethereum. It aims for a 1 USD to 1 USDC ratio and USD coins can be used to facilitate cross-border transactions.

9. Polkadot (DOT)

Market cap: $26.04B

Launched in 2020, Palkadot aims to integrate any number of blockchains by creating a cryptocurrency network that connects the various blockchains so they can work together.  This combination may change how cryptocurrencies are managed.

10. Uniswap (UNI)

Market cap: $16.24B

Launched in 2020, Uniswap is an open source and decentralized crypto exchange that uses an automated liquidity model for trading and is Ethereum based token that powers Uniswap.

It has no central facilitators such as banks or brokers, it is powered by smart contracts and pooled user resources.  

ALSO READ: Mobox (MBOX) coin: Is it a good buy with a listing on Binance?

Note: All the mentioned market caps and prices are as on 20 August 2021.

Conclusion

It is believed that in Ethereum, a second largest cryptocurrency could soon overtake Bitcoin. As the popularity of decentralized finance cryptocurrency technology, backed by Ethereum’s network to recreate traditional financial instruments such as loans and interest and designed to replace the role of banks with blockchain based protocols has been the main reason behind robust increase in Ethereum prices.