In this review I mainly focus on High Market cap ($100,000,000) and Mid-Market Cap ($10,000,000) coins from https://coinmarketcap.com/. All rankings and data are from 12.01.2020.

Table of Contents

• Store of value
• Platform
• Stable-coins
• Privacy
• Exchange
• Utility
• Other

 

Store of value

 

Store of value coins aim to store value like digital gold. When speculations and volatility are over, a general price will set in, at that point store of value coins will be a great way to protect your wealth.

 

Bitcoin (BTC) #1

Many people try to claim that their coin is “the real Bitcoin” to confuse people and to get them to invest into their coin. Bitcoin Cash BCH #4 at coinmarketcap.com at the moment (12.01.2020) tried to outperform Bitcoin back when Bitcoin lightning network wasn’t established yet, back then the bigger block size allowed BCH to be faster than Bitcoin, which had major transaction problems at that time. After the Bitcoin lightning network was deployed Bitcoin Cash became obsolete.

Therefore the argument which coin is “the real Bitcoin” is pointless, you already have Bitcoin for store of value, and you don’t need another coin which does nothing.

 

Platform

 

Platform coins create a whole ecosystem, providing a coin to use various dapps which will be created by developers all over the world. There is still a rally going on, as it is not yet decided which platform will push through an be the most used one.

 

Ethereum (ETH) #2

Ethereum (ETH) is a smart contract platform that enables developers to build decentralized applications (dapps) conceptualized by Vitalik Buterin in 2013. ETH is the native currency for the Ethereum platform and also works as the transaction fees to miners on the Ethereum network.

 

Ethereum is the pioneer for blockchain based smart contracts. When running on the blockchain a smart contract becomes like a self-operating computer program that automatically executes when specific conditions are met. On the blockchain, smart contracts allow for code to be run exactly as programmed without any possibility of downtime, censorship, fraud or third-party interference. It can facilitate the exchange of money, content, property, shares, or anything of value. The Ethereum network went live on July 30th, 2015 with 72 million Ethereum premined.

Although Ethereum works with Proof of Work (PoW) right now, it will transition to Proof of Stake (PoS) with the Casper Protocol. Ethereum smart contracts are written in Solidity, a new programming language.

 

Ethereum Classic (ETC) #20

Ethereum Classic is a decentralized platform that runs smart contracts: applications that can be run exactly as programmed without any possibility of downtime, censorship, or third party interference.

After a loophole was exploited by a hacker on June 17th, 2016, resulting in millions of stolen Ether, Ethereum forked to a new chain that aimed to remedy the damages from the hack. Ethereum Classic is the continuation of the original Ethereum blockchain - the classic version.

 

Neo (NEO) #19

Neo describes itself as an open-source platform driven by the community. It utilizes blockchain technology and digital identities to digitize and automate the management of assets using smart contracts. Using a distributed network, it aims to create a smart economy by building infrastructures of the next-gen Internet and creating a solid foundation for mass blockchain adoption.

To increase mass blockchain adoption Neo has no new programming language, it rather allows developers to use many mainstream languages they probably already know. You can build Neo smart contracts in C#, Python, Java, JavaScript (JS/TS) and Go.

 

EOS (EOS) #8

EOS.IO is a blockchain protocol powered by the native cryptocurrency EOS. The protocol emulates most of the attributes of a real computer including hardware (CPU(s) & GPU(s) for processing, local/RAM memory, hard-disk storage) with the computing resources distributed equally among EOS cryptocurrency holders. EOSIO operates as a smart contract platform and decentralized operating system intended for the deployment of industrial-scale decentralized applications through a decentralized autonomous corporation model. The smart contract platform claims to eliminate transaction fees and also conduct millions of transactions per second.

 

Tron (TRX) #11

TRON (TRX) strives to build the future of a truly decentralized internet and global free content entertainment system that utilizes blockchain technology. The TRON Protocol represents the architecture of an operating system based on the blockchain which could enable developers to create smart contracts and decentralized applications, freely publish, own, and store data and other content. According to the TRON Foundation, the ecosystem surrounding this network specializes in offering massive scalability and consistent reliability capable of processing transactions at a high rate via high-throughput computing.

 

Cardano (ADA) #13

Cardano (ADA) is a decentralized platform that will allow complex programmable transfers of value in a secure and scalable fashion. It is reportedly the first blockchain platform to evolve out of a scientific philosophy and a research-first driven approach, and one of the first to be built in the Haskell programming language. Cardano is developing a smart contract platform which seeks to deliver more advanced features than any protocol previously developed. The development team consists of a large global collective of expert engineers and researchers. The protocol reportedly features a layered blockchain software stack that is flexible, scalable, and is being developed with the most rigorous academic and commercial software standards in the industry. Cardano will use a democratic governance system that allows the project to evolve over time, and fund itself sustainably through a treasury system.

 

Stable-coins

 

Stable coins are cryptocurrencies with a value meant to mirror the value of the U.S. dollar. The idea was to create a stable cryptocurrency that can be used like digital dollars. Tether is the most popular stable coin at the moment, but many competitors are getting more and more attention like USD Coin or Paxos Standard for example.

 

Tether (USDT) #5

Tether converts cash into digital currency, to anchor or tether the value to the price of national currencies like the US dollar, the Euro, and the Yen. Every tether is always 100% backed by Tethers reserves.

 

USD Coin (USDC) #26

USDC is a fully collateralized US dollar stablecoin. It is an Ethereum powered coin and is the brainchild of CENTRE, an open source project bootstrapped by contributions from Circle and Coinbase. USDCs are issued by regulated and licensed financial institutions that maintain full reserves of the equivalent fiat currency in a 1 USDC:1 USD ratio. Issuers are required to report their USD reserve holdings frequently, and Grant Thornton LLP issues reports on those holdings every month.

 

Paxos Standard (PAX) #33

Paxos Standard (PAX) is a stablecoin that allows users to exchange US dollars for Paxos Standard Tokens to 'transact at the speed of the internet'. It aims to meld the stability of the dollar with blockchain technology. Paxos, the company behind PAX, has a charter from the New York State Department of Financial Services, which allows it to offer regulated services in the cryptoasset space.

 

Privacy

 

Privacy coins aim to be fast, private and secure. The goal is to have digital money you can use everywhere with maximum privacy. Allowing nobody to see who buys or sells what.

 

Monero (XMR) #10

Monero (XMR) is a private, secure, and untraceable cryptocurrency that was launched April 18th, 2014. With Monero, it is said you are in complete control of your funds and privacy no one else can see anyone else's balances or transactions.

 

Zcash (ZEC) #29

Launched in 2016 by Zooko Wilcox-O’Hearn and based on the Zerocoin protocol, Zcash (ZEC) is a decentralized and open-source privacy-focused cryptocurrency that enables selective transparency of transactions. Zcash transactions can either be transparent or shielded through a zero-knowledge proof called zk-SNARKs. This allows the network to maintain a secure ledger of balances without disclosing the parties or amounts involved.

 

Verge (XVG) #74

Created in 2014 under its original name of DogecoinDark, Verge (XVG) is an open-source privacy coin with a team of international developers. Verge uses the anonymity tool Tor and an anonymous network layer I2P to hide specific transactions’ IP addresses and locations. Transaction speed on Verge is estimated to be at 5 seconds due to the use of Simple Payment Verification (SPV).

 

Exchange

 

Exchange coins are the cryptocurrency of the exchange platform. Providing lower fees than using other cryptocurrency and offering a vast amount of trading pairs.

 

Binance Coin (BNB) #9

Binance Coin (BNB) is the cryptocurrency of the Binance platform. The name "Binance" is a combination of binary and finance. As of 2019, many businesses accept BNB as a form of payment. Get 5% fee discount at www.binance.com/.

 

UNUS SED LEO (LEO) #15

UNUS SED LEO (LEO) is the cryptocurrency token of the exchange www.bitfinex.comand operates on the Ethereum platform. Derivates and Funding are available here.

 

Huobi Token (HT) #18

Huobi Token (HT) is an exchange based token and native currency of the Huobi crypto exchange. The HT can be used to purchase monthly VIP status plans for transaction fee discounts, vote on exchange decisions, gain early access to special Huobi events, receive crypto rewards from seasonal buybacks and trade with other cryptocurrencies listed on the Huobi exchange.

 

Crypto.com Coin (CRO) #23

Crypto.com was founded in 2016 with the goal of accelerating the world’s transition to cryptocurrency. Key products include: the Crypto.com Wallet & Card App, a place to buy, sell, and pay with crypto, the MCO Visa Card, a metal card with no annual fees, and the Crypto.com Chain, which reportedly enables users to pay and be paid in crypto, anywhere, for free. Crypto.com is headquartered in Hong Kong with a team size of 120+. Enter Code pcyxv3yd3t for a 50$ bonus.

 

Utility

 

Utility tokens provide fast transaction speed and low transaction fees. They are mostly used to transfer value due to their low fees and fast speed.

 

Ripple (XRP) #3

XRP is an independent digital asset that is native to the XRP Ledger. With governance and fast transaction confirmations, XRP is said to be the most efficient settlement option for financial institutions and liquidity providers seeking global reach, accessibility, and fast settlement finality for interbank flows.

According to Ripple, those who use the digital asset XRP to source liquidity can reportedly do so in seconds. The team at Ripple hopes to enable the world to move value like it already moves information on the web today.

 

Litecoin (LTC) #6

Litecoin is a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency created by Charlie Lee. It was created based on the Bitcoin protocol but differs in terms of the hashing algorithm used. Litecoin uses the memory intensive Scrypt proof of work mining algorithm. Scrypt allows consumer-grade hardware such as GPU to mine those coins.

 

Stellar (XLM) #12

The Stellar network is an open source, distributed, and community owned network used to facilitate cross-asset transfers of value. Stellar aims to help facilitate cross-asset transfer of value at a fraction of a penny while aiming to be an open financial system that gives people of all income levels access to low-cost financial services.

 

Other

 

Tipping

Dogecoin (DOGE) #31

Based on the popular "Doge" Internet meme and featuring a Shiba Inu on its logo, Dogecoin (DOGE) is a cryptocurrency that was forked from Litecoin in Dec 2013. Dogecoin has been used primarily as a tipping system on Reddit and Twitter to reward the creation or sharing of quality content. Dogecoin was created by Billy Markus from Portland, Oregon and Jackson Palmer from Sydney, Australia. Both had envisaged Dogecoin as a fun, light-hearted cryptocurrency that would have greater appeal beyond the core Bitcoin audience.

 

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Basic Attention Token (BAT) #32

BAT uses a new browser called “Brave”, it has a built in ad blocker for common ads. Verified websites let you see BAT advertisement and you get paid every week in BAT depending on how much attention you had on each website.

 

Blockchain Proof Engine

Tierion (TNT) #137

Tierion creates technology and products that reduce the cost and complexity of trust. Use Chainpoint to anchor data to the blockchain and create a timestamp proof.

 

Gold

PAX Gold (PAXG) #265

PAX Gold (PAXG) is a digital asset where one token is backed by one fine troy ounce (t oz) of a 400 oz London Good Delivery gold bar, stored in Brink’s gold vaults. Anyone who owns PAXG owns the underlying physical gold, held in custody by Paxos Trust Company.