This past year has been extraordinary for the crypto market, with investor-driven demand pushing the prices of many altcoins and Bitcoin (CCC:BTC-USD) through the roof. The increase in the price of BTC, which now hovers at around $58,000, has been a catalyst for many cryptos. As a result, they’ve enjoyed double- or even triple-digit returns year-to-date (YTD). The poster child of this success, though, has been Dogecoin (CCC:DOGE-USD). Therefore, this article will discuss seven altcoins that could be the next DOGE.
While Bitcoin is an obvious choice for most crypto investors, others are looking for some cheaper yet promising altcoins to add to their portfolios. Dogecoin, for instance, started the year around $0.0047. Now, it is worth around 39 cents, showing a gain of almost 7000% YTD. Put another way, $1,000 invested in DOGE four months ago would now be worth around $70,000.
As digital money continues to go mainstream on the Street, more crypto assets are becoming available. If you are new to this world, you might want to think of them as peer-to-peer (P2P) payment platforms. Individuals or enterprises typically use these altcoins for different blockchain projects. But whether a given coin will catch investors’ attention depends on a variety of factors, from utility to potentially innovative technology. Recent research from Carnegie Mellon University highlights the following:
“Many alt-coins are forks of Bitcoin, inheriting many of its familiar and well-loved characteristics while adding a twist, whether it be in the cryptography or validation process. These new currencies created distinct ecosystems where developers can introduce completely new procedures.”
In Dogecoin’s case, it was set up by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer as a payment system (and a meme) back in 2013. However, what really turbocharged the recent bull run in DOGE was the interest of Reddit traders. In addition, there has been celebrity support from folks like Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA).
So, with this all in mind, here are seven altcoins that could gain traction in May:
Altcoins to Consider: Binance Coin (BNB-USD)
Source: Robert Paternoster / Shutterstock.com
Current price: $661
52-week range: $14.28 – $664.18
Market capitalization: $100.8 billion
Binance’s cryptocurrency exchange went live back in 2017. It is now one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world. BNB is the “native coin of the Binance Chain,” the platform that its decentralized exchange operates on. Thus, it powers the Binance Ecosystem. It is essentially a “utility token” that provides traders with a discount when paying for fees on its own exchange.
BNB-USD is therefore growing alongside the exchange. Whenever there is a lot of volatility in the crypto market, investors flock to the Binance Exchange, sending the value of the crypto asset higher in the process. There are also various promos on Binance which have participants acquiring BNB. For many, an investment in Binance is easily justified based on increased trading and transactions at the exchange.
Nonetheless, the fact that BNB relies entirely on the Binance Exchange could also constitute an investment risk. If the exchange were to crash or become less popular among users, the coin’s value could easily fall.
As such, interested investors should do further due diligence to see whether an investment in BNB fits their objectives. Current investor sentiment will likely push the price of this altcoin higher, but who knows what the future holds.
Chiliz (CHZ-USD)
Source: shutterstock.com/Morrowind
Current price: $0.53
52-week range: $0.0074 – 0.834
Market cap: $2.98 billion
Next up on our list of altcoins and crypto names is Chiliz, which operates in the non-fungible token (NFT) space. Over the past several months, NFTs have become the latest cryptocurrency phenomenon hyped worldwide. These blockchain-based tokens act as certificates of ownership for virtual or physical assets. Many are built on the Ethereum (CCC:ETH-USD) platform.
CHZ-USD serves as the digital currency for the Chiliz and Socios.com platforms. On Chiliz.net — a tokenized sports exchange — fans can buy or trade sports-branded tokens. Likewise, on Socios.com, fans can purchase voting rights for their favorite teams, interacting with European soccer clubs like Atletico de Madrid, FC Barcelona, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain. Moreover, CEO Alexandre Dreyfus recently announced that Chiliz will grow its U.S. operations. Dreyfus noted that “the company is preparing to launch fan tokens with franchises from the five major U.S. sports leagues.”
Chiliz is also attaching monetization methods for sports and e-sports organizations. For instance, Chiliz and Rakuten (OTCMKTS:RKUNY) announced a partnership in April whereby “Rakuten customers in Spain, UK and Germany can use Rakuten points to redeem Fan Tokens.”
If you believe sports fans can push Chiliz further up, you might want to keep an eye on this name.
Altcoins to Consider: Decentraland (MANA-USD)
Source: shutterstock.com/Piotr Swat
Current price: $1.43
52-week range: $0.0323 – $1.63
Market cap: $2.25 billion
Another blockchain platform — Decentraland — is the next name on this altcoins list.
Decntraland is a vibrant online community. The platform was initially created in 2017. Decentraland offers parcels known as LANDs, which can be purchased with the MANA-USD non-fungible tokens.
LAND owners have control over the environment and applications they operate. They also receive all of the income generated by their creations. Users who own MANA can, for instance, participate in digital land auctions or vote on policy updates such as subsidies for new developments.
Digital asset manager Grayscale, which also owns the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (OTCMKTS:GBTC), is entering the world of decentralized finance (DeFi) with five new new trust offerings. One of them is MANA-USD. This new trust could give MANA a boost, seeing more capital move into this NFT asset class.
Enjincoin (ENJ-USD)
Source: Shutterstock
Current price: $2.66
52-week range: $0.1258 – $3.996
Market cap: $2.22 billion
Next up on this altcoins list is Enjin, a blockchain-based game and app developer that was originally founded in 2009 as the Enjin Network. ENJ has over 20 million users, offering “an ecosystem of integrated products that make it easy for everyone to develop, trade, monetize, and market with blockchain.” According to its website, “Enjin’s tools enable game developers and studios to utilize tokenized digital assets as part of their acquisition, retention, engagement, and monetization strategies.”
ENJ-USD tokens can be utilized across multiple video games. Kriptomat highlights the value of Enjin’s particular platform, noting that “[d]evelopers need to lock ENJ tokens in order to mint virtual items. When a player obtains these items, they can use them ingame, trade them or even sell them for ENJ.”
Back in early April, Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN) also launched Enjin on its platform. What’s more, according to recent metrics, the “global gaming market reached a value of US$ 167.9 Billion in 2020 […] With the rising popularity of e-sports, multiplayer video game competition between professional and amateur players, the gaming market is witnessing an accelerated growth worldwide.” Investors who believe this platform can capitalize further on that growth may want to consider investing in ENJ-USD.
Altcoins to Consider: Litecoin (LTC-USD)
Source: Shutterstock
Current price: $289.77
52-week range: $40.14 – $335.02
Market cap: $19.34 billion
Litecoin is an “open source, global payment network” that’s often referred to as the “silver to Bitcoin’s gold.” This pick of the altcoins was developed to produce faster tokens in comparison to BTC, making it much quicker in executing transactions at near-zero cost. In 2017, LTC-USD completed its first Lightning Network transaction. This transfer was completed in less than one second. However, analysts concur that the value of LTC could skyrocket higher if its transaction speed could increase even more.
But that’s not all. Because the price of Litecoin is attached to Bitcoin, LTC-USD’s momentum generally ebbs and flows along with that of BTC-USD. The crypto’s website highlights, “With substantial industry support, trade volume and liquidity, Litecoin is a proven medium of commerce complementary to Bitcoin.”
As of late March, Paypal (NASDAQ:PYPL) users in the United States can now conduct transactions with LTC-USD. Recent days have seen a resurgence in buyers. So, interested investors should monitor Litecoin and possibly buy the dips.
Polkadot (DOT-USD)
Source: shutterstock.com/nurionstd
Current price: $37.53
52-week range: $2.69 – $38.22
Market cap: $35.07 billion
Next up on this altcoins list, Polkadot is a Swiss blockchain that originally started in 2016. DOT allows developers to build their own blockchains and connect them with each other. According to the crypto’s website, “Polkadot enables cross-blockchain transfers of any type of data or asset, not just tokens.”
DOT-USD wants to become the central point where all blockchains can share information. Analysts suggest that this ability to communicate with many blockchains could be a significant catalyst for the growth of decentralized applications. Developers seem to agree. So, it’s only natural that investors would follow them.
In late April, the digital investment specialist Osprey launched a Polkadot trust product for accredited investors. The minimum investment is $25,000 and Coinbase is the fund’s custodian. Moreover, analysts provide solid near-term price estimates for Polkadot, some as high as the $80 level. As such, I also believe this young crypto name deserves your attention.
Altcoins to Consider: Stellar (XLM-USD)
Source: Shutterstock
Current price: $0.55
52-week range: $0.0611 – $0.6898
Market cap: $12.8 billion
Last up on this list of altcoins and crypto is Stellar, an open blockchain network that was launched back in 2014. XLM connects financial institutions for the purpose of large transactions, which can now be executed instantly for little cost and without intermediaries. The platform hosts thousands of exchanges between cryptos and fiat currencies per second. Stellar uses the “lumen” token, commonly referred to as XLM-USD.
Essentially, Stellar functions as the Paypal of cryptocurrency networks, serving as a bridge between banks and blockchain networks. It can convert any currency and trade it across various channels much cheaper and faster than traditional methods.
Deloitte was one of the earliest supporters of Stellar. IBM (NYSE:IBM) is another. With big names believing in it, investors who are looking into altcoins could consider buying XLM-USD for the long-run. This pick is quickly becoming a disruptive solution for cross-border payments.
On the date of publication, Tezcan Gecgil did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
Tezcan Gecgil has worked in investment management for over two decades in the U.S. and U.K. In addition to formal higher education in the field, she has also completed all 3 levels of the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) examination. Her passion is for options trading based on technical analysis of fundamentally strong companies. She especially enjoys setting up weekly covered calls for income generation.