Just for fun today I decided to see which Cryptocurrencies have grown the most since 2020, so I could call this my half decade report. The qualifying criteria is the percentage, as measured from January 2020 (or when launched) and not the actual value of the currency. I was somewhat surprised that Ethereum didn't feature in my list, coming in at approximately 2000%.
What surprised me even more was that Shib Inu (SHIB) came in first, with a growth of >80,000%, which was driven by a meme coin frenzy, and aggressive ecosystem expansion (Shibarium). While it is only worth a micro-amount it was the coin that saw the greatest increase in value, although with an almost limitless market cap and doesn't seem to be going anywhere fast. As I wrote previously I will never buy SHIB but if it is going for free (on Dutchy this month) I will collect it and wait for it to either die or pump. I currently have >30,000 and even if the reach the mighty price of a single penny I will be quids in!
In second place came Solana (SOL) which is a project that has belatedly caught my interest, again as I posted a week or so ago. With its ultra-fast blockchain (65,000+ TPS) and low fees it has rapidly become a favorite for DeFi and NFTs and despite periodic outages, it remains a top growth story and one worht keeping an eye on.
In third place is the biggest joke of them all. DogeCoin (DOGE), the most notorious of all meme coins. Largely thanks to being pumped by Elon Musk and the associated hype it saw an increase of >7,400%, but with no real world value or utility it must surely know its days are numbers. Although I wouldn't complain if Musk or another whale were to pump SHIB so I can dump mine. Even if that makes my standing somewhat hypocritical.
In fourth pace was Bianance's native token, namely the Binance Coin (BNB) which grew by 4,500% and this was largely fueled by its utility on the Bianance ecosystem as well as significant token burning, which has reduced its Market Cap and driven its price up.
And last but not least (and not something you usually say concerning this most specific of all coins), in fifth place in my listing is BitCoin (BTC) and while it hasn't been the highest percentage gainer, its sheer scale and institutional adoption haven only further cemented its role as so-called "digital gold".
So to summarise, it seems that meme coins (specifically DOGE and SHIB for the sake of this article) have delivered the largest percentage gains due to speculative hype while utility tokens (particularly here BNB and SOL) have also performed well given their real-world use cases in exchanges and smart contracts. This real world adoption is for me key, anything other is just a waste of time. And then finally the giant above all coins remains BitCoin because of its inherent stability as a long-term performer and while it has seen lower relative gains it is also unmatched in its credibility and the most trusted of all coins. I just wonder if Ethereum would have performed even better if not riddled with proportionally high gas fees and in the absence of new kids on the block who frankly do it better and certainly cheaper.
Just thinking out loud.
Obviously, what I have done is just a swift overview - almost for fun - and past performance is no indicator of what might happen in the future. For example I am convinced DOGE and SHIB (as will all meme coins) will die at some point whereas Solana and BitCoin will remain integral to the crypto community. Of course this only my opinion - and I could be wrong. Always DYOR! As always stay safe and well my friends
