This weekly update tracks some of the largest cryptocurrencies by market share: bitcoin and ether. We’ve also included XRP, as it was one of the largest cryptocurrencies when this article began. According to Wikipedia, a cryptocurrency is “a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange that uses cryptography to secure its transactions, to control the creation of additional units, and to verify the transfer of assets.”
Bitcoin was the world’s first cryptocurrency and decentralized digital currency. The first bitcoin transaction occurred in early 2009 and has since grown worldwide. Ether is another cryptocurrency run on the Ethereum blockchain platform and has the second largest market share, despite being the newest of the three with its launch in July 2015. XRP, which is owned by Ripple and launched in 2012, was one of the larger cryptocurrencies for some time until new coins joined the market. We’ve included it here for reference.
The third-largest market share of cryptocurrency, tether, is a token “backed by actual assets” which includes one US dollar, one euro, or loans to affiliate companies and is controlled by the owners of Bitfinex. It’s a controversial cryptocurrency due to its alleged manipulation of crypto pricing. It is called a “stable coin” because it was designed to always be worth $1.00. We do not chart it because its price rarely changes.
The Latest Crypto Data (through July 18, 2023)
Bitcoin inched up from last week and is now up ~83% year to date.
XRP surged over this past week and is currently up ~120% year-to-date.
Ether increased from last week and briefly crossed $2,000 for the first time since April. ETH is currently up ~60% year-to-date.
An index has been created in order to chart these three cryptocurrencies together, considering their significantly different pricing histories. Ether tops the chart, i.e., the price of an ether has changed the most out of all three cryptocurrencies.
Crypto ETFs have garnered a lot of attention as of late. In June, a handful of asset managers such as Blackrock, WisdomTree, Invesco, and Fidelity filed for Bitcoin spot ETFs, moving the crypto ETF industry back into the spotlight. For a closer look at two of the top-performing Bitcoin-related ETFs this year, read more here.
ETFs associated with cryptocurrencies include: ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) and ProShares Short Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITI).
For more news, information, and analysis, visit the Crypto Channel.
This article was originally written by Jill Mislinski. Starting in January 2023, AP Charts pages will be maintained by Jennifer Nash at VettaFi | Advisor Perspectives