Bitcoin has led the world of crypto for so long, that the terms crypto and Bitcoin are often used interchangeably. However, the truth is, digital currencies don’t just include Bitcoin. There are many other cryptocurrencies that are part of the crypto world. The purpose of this post is to educate our readers about cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin to give them more options to choose from – if they want to make cryptocurrencies.
So let’s start with the first name on our list, which is:
Litecoin:
Founded in 2011, Litecoin is often referred to as the ‘silver to Bitcoin’s gold.’ Charlie Lee – an MIT graduate and former engineer at Google – is the founder of Litecoin.
Similar to Bitcoin, Litecoin is an open source payment system that operates without a central authority.
Litecoin is similar to Bitcoin in many ways and often leads people to think: “Why not go with Bitcoin? They are both the same!”. Here’s the catch: Litecoin’s block generation is much faster than Bitcoin! and this is the main reason why merchants around the world are becoming more open to accepting Litecoin.
Ethereum:
Another open source, decentralized software platform. The fund was launched in 2015 and enables Smart Contracts and Distributed Software to be built and run without downtime.
Applications on the Ethereum platform require a cryptographic token – Ether. According to Ethereum developers, the token can be used to sell, secure, and distribute almost anything.
Ethereum suffered a debacle in 2016 when the currency split into two parts: Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.
In the leading competition, Ethereum is the second most popular and is behind Bitcoin.
Zcash:
Zcash came out at the end of 2016. This currency explains itself: “if Bitcoin is like http money, Zcash is https”.
Zcash promises to provide transparency, security, and transaction privacy. The currency also offers a ‘secure’ option so that users can transfer data in an encrypted code.
Dash:
Dash is originally a private version of Bitcoin. It is also known as ‘Darkcoin’ because of its secrecy.
Dash is famous for providing anonymity that allows users to be tracked.
This coin first appeared on the digital market in 2014. Since then, it has been experiencing a huge fan following for a very short period of time.
Ripple:
With a market capitalization of over $1bn, Ripple is the last name on our list. The fund was launched in 2012 and offers instant, secure and affordable payments.
The Ripple ledger does not require mining, which makes it different from Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Less mining reduces computing power which ultimately reduces latency and creates faster transactions.
Wrap up:
Although Bitcoin continues to lead the crypto pack, its competitors are rising. Coins like Ethereum and Ripple have surpassed Bitcoin in business transactions and are increasing in popularity every day. Depending on the current situation, some cryptos are here to stay and will soon give Bitcoin a very difficult time to maintain its growth.