Traders in cryptocurrencies tend to want to get rich fast, dreaming of following in the footsteps of the early buyers of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) who held on and became multimillionaires thanks to their foresight. However, it’s worth noting that the technology behind Bitcoin is rapidly becoming obsolete.
Nowadays, cryptocurrencies have evolved far from their roots as simple tools for rapid monetary exchanges without the need to go through traditional financial institutions. As such, investors should turn their attention away from BTC and start looking for alternative coins (altcoins) created in more recent rounds of innovation.
Three top candidates that fit that description are Celo (CRYPTO:CELO), My Neighbor Alice (CRYPTO:ALICE), and Audius (CRYPTO:AUDIO).
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Celo
Celo’s blockchain is unique because users’ wallet addresses, which is where one’s crypto is stored (public keys) are tied to their mobile phone numbers. This allows anyone with a cellphone to send, receive, and transact with the crypto seamlessly. Moreover, people can use their mobile wallets to use peer-to-peer software for purposes such as buying digital art, swapping for altcoins, lending out their crypto, and more. Celo has facilitated nearly 30 million transactions since its inception last year.
Users utilize CELO coins to pay transaction fees, and participate in governance in the project by voting on proposals put forth by developers. In addition, the blockchain also hosts the Celo Dollar (CRYPTO: CUSD), a stablecoin that has its value pegged to the U.S. dollar and is used for consumer transactions. This dual-coin structure means investors can enjoy the potential for appreciation with CELO coins while consumers can pay for goods and services without worrying about volatility in prices. It’s the best of both worlds. It is definitely an exciting coin for investors to check out, as it offers a transaction settlement time of just five seconds and little to no energy consumption.
2. My Neighbor Alice
As ridiculous as the name may sound, there’s some solid fundamental value backing its namesake ALICE tokens, which are built on the Ethereum blockchain (ERC-20). My Neighbor Alice is a free-to-play multiplayer game in which users buy and sell virtual islands, develop them with in-game purchases (like sheep, furniture, houses, lakes, decorations, etc.), and connect with friends. It’s currently in the playtest stage, and is expected to launch fully in the spring.
But, here’s the kicker: Each piece of the game’s virtual islands comes in the form of a non-fungible token (NFT) — a certificate of ownership of that digital asset. So players will be able to trade them at will both in-game and on NFT marketplaces like OpenSea.io, which surpassed $3 billion in trading volume in August.
In addition, investors will be able to earn rewards by using their ALICE tokens to validate sending or receiving money on the blockchain or buying and selling activity in-game (aka, staking). What’s more, they will also be able to lend their virtual island NFTs to other players for them to build on while receiving ALICE as “rent payments” — kind of like being a virtual landlord. Finally, under its decentralized governance setup, ALICE holders will be able to vote on new game protocols put forth by developers.
If all this is hard to comprehend, think of ALICE tokens as something like the in-game currencies one might purchase for use on a platform like Roblox. Except that unlike Robux, ALICE tokens also have the potential to appreciate over time due to their utility. I would definitely consider checking them out before the game goes live in spring 2022.
3. Audius
Like ALICE, AUDIO is an ERC-20 token, except it is the native currency of blockchain music streaming platform Audius. More than 5 million users tune in to Audius every month to listen to content created by more than 100,000 artists. On Sept. 17, its developers raised $5 million in funding from celebrities such as Katy Perry.
The platform enables artists, established or developing, to earn revenue for their work in the form of AUDIO tokens. They can also earn badges and earnings multipliers as their popularity grows. But what’s most intriguing are developers’ future plans for AUDIO. These include the ability for users to “invest” in artists by pledging their AUDIO tokens, in return for which they’ll earn a portion of the royalty revenue from the artists’ music.
It’s a really cool concept, and investors should note that the business side of things is also going well. For example, Audius recently began a partnership with video-sharing platform TikTok, allowing its artists to upload their music directly onto the platform from Audius. What’s more, artists can also link their TikTok content back to Audius. So the future is looking very bright for AUDIO tokens.
This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the “official” recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. We’re motley! Questioning an investing thesis — even one of our own — helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.