Despite Bitcoin’s recent volatility, many people continue to invest in the cryptocurrency without sufficient prior research. Is the Bitcoin really as simple they think it is? The answer is a big no. Some investors are hoping to evade taxes. And according to the ICO Token News website, China has declared initial coin offerings (ICOs) illegal. An ICO is a mechanism through which different types of cryptocurrencies are exchanged for Bitcoin. Given the risks of Bitcoin, it may be worth looking into other cryptocurrencies.
Ethereum
Bitcoin is one of the many applications of blockchain technology. Another example is Ethereum, an open software platform that permits its users to develop and deploy decentralized applications. Ether is a cryptocurrency that is based on the Ethereum platform.
So far, the Ether has attracted all types of suitors, ranging from real estate players to software developers. Ether, which is relatively stable when compared to Bitcoin, has the second-highest market capitalization of any cryptocurrency. One source for keeping up-to-date with the price and trends of Ether is Cryptocoinjudge.com.
XRP / Ripple
Ripple is a transaction network associated with the currency XRP, which was launched via Kickstarter in 2012. Ripple transactions take about four seconds, whereas a Bitcoin transaction often takes 10 minutes. Ripple transaction fees are lower than those for Bitcoin, and XRP is accepted by many more banks than its competition. It has a market cap of approximately USD 130 billion.
Litecoin
Litecoin is similar to Bitcoin in that both operate on a “proof-to-work” consent mechanism. The time required to do the “work” to “mine” a Litecoin is less than for Bitcoin. Litecoin also can handle more transactions per second. That is, transactions are faster, and the chances of failure are less. Charlie Lee, the founder of Litecoin, remains an active member of the project. Lastly, with a supply of almost 84 million, Litecoin is better equipped than Bitcoin to face future increases in demand. Its value is up approximately 7000 percent since January 2017.
Monero
Launched in April 2014, Monero is another form of cryptocurrency that is untraceable, offering complete privacy. While other cryptocurrencies have preset block sizes, Monero doesn’t. The blocksize is adjustable in accordance with the number of transactions, allowing for greater scalability. Monero transactions take about 2 minutes.
Dash
Dash is a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency. Unlike Bitcoin, which has no governance structure, Dash has a voting system allowing changes to be brought in quickly. Transaction times are about 4 seconds. The average transaction cost for Dash is USD 0.40 compared to Bitcoin’s average of USD 6. Dash also provides a very high level of privacy.
With Bitcoin arguably near saturation levels, some of these competing cryptocurrencies may deserve a second look.
This content was written by Iris Gordensky and contracted by the owner of the ICO Token News and Cryptocoin Judge websites.
Similar Posts:
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: B2B Fintech Clowd9 Chooses Netcetera for Payments Security
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Lends $10m to Latin American Agriculture Development Corporation (LAAD) to Boost Green Investment
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Baab Mobile Money App Combines Cryptocurrency, Traditional Financial Accounts
- MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Mobile Money, Interoperability and Financial Inclusion;” by Markus K Brunnermeier et al; published by National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Ebanx Acquires Payment Initiator License, Accessing Pix to Simplify E-commerce Purchases in Brazil
