As the digital currency space continues to mature, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that not all crypto is created equal. While some digital currencies may be better known than others, the market for alternative currencies is growing at an astonishing rate. In fact, as of January 2018, the combined market cap for all publicly listed crypto assets exceeded $600 billion. This figure is up from just $20 billion in July of 2017, a growth of nearly 3,000% in just one year.
As this new asset class continues to grow and develop, investors are being forced to ask themselves which variety of crypto has the best technology? That answer will vary depending on who you ask.
For example, Bitcoin purists will tell you that their preferred variety of crypto has the superior technology because it offers decentralization and censorship resistance—two things that can’t be said about any other type of crypto. But what if we dig a little deeper? Which type of crypto actually has the best technology? Let’s take a look:
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Ethereum:
If we’re talking about the crypto that has the best technology, there’s no way we can leave Ethereum off the list. Ethereum is not only the second most valuable digital currency (by market cap), it’s also the platform that powers most of the decentralized applications (dApps) built on blockchain technology. Let’s briefly discuss the nature of Ethereum and blockchain technology. Blockchain is an open, distributed ledger that is secured by a network of computers known as “miners.”
Ethereum is an open-source, public blockchain network that allows developers to build dApps that run on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). The EVM is a decentralized computer that runs on the Ethereum blockchain and uses Ether (ETH) as its native currency. The EVM allows dApp developers to build applications that are fully autonomous, censorship resistant, and self-executing.
Ripple:
Although the Ripple network has been around since 2012, it wasn’t until 2017—when its native XRP token broke into the top 5 cryptocurrencies by market cap—that people really started to take notice. Over the course of just 12 months, the price of XRP increased by more than 35,000%. Needless to say, this digital currency was on fire.
While it’s true that Ripple is not a decentralized digital currency, it’s perhaps the closest thing we have to a legitimate digital asset. Ripple’s primary function is facilitating the transfer of funds between different banks and financial institutions.
This is made possible by the Ripple network’s decentralized ledger and consensus ledger. The ledger is a digital record of all transactions that take place on the network. The consensus ledger is a separate record that shows which banks have signed off on each transaction.
Litecoin:
Although it’s often overlooked, Litecoin has been around for a long time. This digital currency was first released in 2011, making it one of the oldest altcoins in existence.
While there are many differences between Litecoin and Bitcoin, perhaps the most notable is Litecoin’s use of scrypt instead of Bitcoin’s use of SHA-256. Since Litecoin’s mining algorithm uses a different proof of work (PoW) algorithm than Bitcoin, it’s generally less resource intensive. This means that Litecoin can be mined more efficiently than Bitcoin, which could end up facilitating greater adoption in the long run.
Bitcoin Cash:
At the time of writing, Bitcoin Cash had the fifth highest market cap among all crypto assets, making it incredibly viable to make this list. Unsurprisingly, this crypto was created as a hard fork of Bitcoin, which means that it was created as an alternative to Bitcoin when the community couldn’t agree on the best course of action.
Since Bitcoin Cash has an increased block size of 8MB, its network can theoretically process transactions faster than Bitcoin. Many investors prefer Bitcoin Cash to Bitcoin because they believe it will be able to scale more effectively.
Dash:
If you’re a fan of privacy and anonymity, you’re probably a fan of Dash. Unlike many other altcoins, Dash is designed to be as anonymous as possible. This is made possible by a number of features, including Dash’s use of coin mixing, its decentralized governance and budgeting system, and its use of ring signatures. Coin mixing allows you to send your funds to someone else who will then send the funds back to you.
This process breaks the chain of ownership, making it impossible to determine who owns the funds. Dash’s decentralized governance system allows users to propose and vote on funding proposals. This helps to keep the system decentralized and ensures that no individual or group has control over the network.
Neo:
If you’re looking for a crypto that’s being built by a team of some of the best and brightest in the industry, Neo is a great place to start. While Neo has been compared to Ethereum in the past, the two digital currencies actually have different uses. Neo is essentially a smart contracts platform. This means that it’s designed to facilitate the exchange of assets by automatically enforcing contracts when certain parameters are met.
Concluding thoughts:
What if we were to tell you that there’s a crypto that’s being built on a scalable blockchain that can process 10,000 transactions per second? Better yet, what if we were to tell you that this crypto is already being used by Fortune 500 companies like Microsoft, Toyota, and HSBC? This is what makes Neo such an exciting project. It’s not only the crypto with the best technology, it also has the potential to disrupt the trillion-dollar world of business.
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