3 Most Popular Cryptocurrencies of 2024

Cryptocurrency had its humble beginning. Its conceptualization dates way back to the 80s, but it only started to make a noise in 2009, when Bitcoin (BTC) emerged into the market.

Today, the financial market has been in a crypto craze. In this lesson, you'll walk through the three most popular cryptocurrencies you trade and profit from today.

 

Lesson Highlights:

 

• The crypto market is the newest addition to the major financial trading instruments, joining the forex, stock, indices, and commodity markets.
• The cryptocurrency market is the only financial market free from governmental or institutional influence.
• The BTC is ranked as the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization today, which is at $1.414 trillion.

 

Overview to Cryptocurrencies

Historically speaking, the crypto market had it rough. Due to its advanced proposition, BTC and other cryptos had trouble penetrating the lives of the public and investors alike.

However, the global idea of making everything digital made cryptocurrencies gain considerable attention.

With cryptocurrencies, you replace state-regulated currencies with a tougher-to-forge digital version. Also, these digital currencies cut across international boundaries as they can be owned by anyone – regardless of the jurisdiction they’re in.

For investors and traders, the crypto market introduces a modernized security to invest in and capitalize on to grow capital. The appeal of crypto to traders lies in its opportunity, accessibility, and its decentralized nature. 

• The cryptocurrency market has a market cap of $2.82 Trillion as of publishing. This presents profitable opportunities for all investors and traders.
• The market operates around the clock. It can be traded 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

• Cryptocurrency is the only instrument that is actually decentralized.

Here are the common and profitable cryptocurrencies you can invest in:

 

Bitcoin (BTC)

Undoubtedly, the most popular cryptocurrency today is Bitcoin, with the largest market capitalization among all cryptocurrencies. However, this popularity did not come as easily as we envisioned.

BTC entered the market in 2009, but it only experienced volatility three years after its introduction to the market. It was when Forbes published an article about the emergence of cryptocurrency in the financial market.

While the stability of BTC growth was not seamless, the digital currency surpassed a market capitalization of $1 trillion in 2021. Today, the BTC market has a market cap of $1.3 trillion and is forecasted to increase further in the coming years.

Also, investors now see BTC as a good hedge against inflation or digital gold because of its stable supply and demand status, which is made possible by Bitcoin Halving.

 

What is Bitcoin Halving?

Did you know that there will never be more than 21 million BTC units in circulation? That’s because of the Bitcoin Halving.

BTC halving protocol is made to address the increasing demand for BTC and maintain its scarcity. This happens every four years, whereas the amount of newly mined BTC is essentially cut in half.

What it does is cut the rewards of BTC miners by 50%. This reward reduction then entails an increase in BTC demand and the surge of its value.




 

Ethereum (ETH)

Created in 2015, Ethereum quickly entered the mainstream crypto market. In fact, it easily secured its reign as the second-largest cryptocurrency.

Unlike BTC, ETH is intended to be more than just a currency or a medium of digital exchange. In fact, it’s a decentralized computing network that can be used to run decentralized applications (DApps) that allow users to play games, send money, follow social media, and even invest.

Also, the computing network of ETH has made the issuance of new crypto assets (also known as “Ethereum tokens”) possible.

But what makes ETH very popular is Its smart contracts aspect. In its most basic form, smart contracts are permission-less-kind-of applications that automatically execute the order when the condition is met.

As mentioned, ETH is ranked second among all active cryptocurrencies based on market capitalization. Currently, its market cap is $400 billion.




 

Tether (USDT)

The idea behind the creation of Tether was to provide a digital asset that is pegged directly to the USD, making its price to consistently plays around $1. It should and can be traded 1:1 to USD, despite the prevailing market condition.

It has become the third-largest cryptocurrency and the largest stablecoin by market capitalization. It was founded by business giants like Brock Pierce, Reeve Collins, and Craig Sellar in 2014 and was released in the same year.

But the question is, what makes USDT so popular and heavily traded crypto if its price is just $1? 
One primary reason behind its popularity is its stablecoin status. Crypto traders mainly use USDT to make transfers between different crypto or to move their trade from or to fiat currencies.

Due to its popularity, the USDT has a market capitalization of $104 billion and has had an all time high (ATH) of $1.21549.

Here are the most popular cryptocurrencies in the financial market. Remember, popularity doesn’t guarantee high returns or success. Always do your own research and see if the crypto asset fits your financial goal and risk appetite.