While prices for Bitcoin and Ethereum have steadied in recent weeks, there have been notable moves in other large-cap cryptocurrencies as the market develops.<\/p>\n
By market capitalisation, the top three cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash.<\/p>\n
That hasn\u2019t changed since Bitcoin split on August 1, but other key players have seen significant volatility. Prices for Ripple, Litecoin and Dash have all had notable price-moves in August.<\/p>\n
Last week, Ripple \u2014 the world\u2019s fourth biggest cryptocurrency \u2014 almost doubled in value to a high of more than US28 cents, on a surge in demand from South Korean and Japanese markets.<\/p>\n
Those gains were short-lived though, and earlier today the cryptocurrency was trading at just below US22 cents.<\/p>\n
image: https:\/\/edge.alluremedia.com.au\/uploads\/businessinsider\/2017\/08\/XRPUSD1.jpg<\/p>\n
Investing.com
\nAt current prices, Litecoin rounds out the top five with a market capitalisation of just under $US3 billion.<\/p>\n
Litecoin was launched on October 2011 and operates on similar blockchain technology to Bitcoin, although with faster processing speeds. As with Bitcoin, only a finite number of Litecoin (84 million) can be mined.<\/p>\n
The currency saw strong demand over the weekend, rising in value from around $US50 to more than $US62 a short time ago.<\/p>\n
image: https:\/\/edge.alluremedia.com.au\/uploads\/businessinsider\/2017\/08\/LTC.jpg<\/p>\n
Investing.com
\nLitecoin\u2019s rise knocked Dash back to sixth, but it briefly climbed into the top five cryptocurrencies by market capitalisation last week, and remains near record highs.<\/p>\n
Over the two weeks since August 15, the price of Dash more than doubled from $US197 to a high above $US397, before cooling off slightly:<\/p>\n
image: https:\/\/edge.alluremedia.com.au\/uploads\/businessinsider\/2017\/08\/DASHUSD.jpg<\/p>\n
Investing.com
\nDash was established in January 2014, and the total number of coins that can be mined is capped at around 18 million.<\/p>\n
Unlike Bitcoin, Dash utilises a two-tier network. Operations are split between miners and members of the network which validate and approve blockchain transactions, known as \u201cnodes\u201d.<\/p>\n
While miners on the Bitcoin network also perform the node function, master nodes on the Dash network are run by separate participants.<\/p>\n
To create an incentive system for nodes to help the network run smoothly, the value of each new block on the blockchain is attributed equally \u2014 45% to miners and 45% to the master node. The remaining 10% goes into a joint pool of funds held by the network.<\/p>\n
Like Ripple, Dash\u2019s recent increase has been driven by rising demand from Asian markets, according to CEO Ryan Taylor.<\/p>\n
\u201cHigh trading volumes are attracting exchanges throughout Asia to inquire about adding Dash trading pairs, so I think we\u2019re only witnessing the beginning of the growth coming from that region,\u201d Taylor told Business Insider.<\/p>\n
The price action suggests that significant demand is shifting around between different cryptocurrencies<\/p>\n
Indeed, Dash\u2019s price increase against Bitcoin has followed a similar path to its rise against traditional fiat currency the US dollar:<\/p>\n
image: https:\/\/edge.alluremedia.com.au\/uploads\/businessinsider\/2017\/08\/DASHBTC.jpg<\/p>\n
Investing.com
\nWhile the debate about what cryptocurrencies are actually worth rages on, the ability of blockchain technology to change the way transactions are made will be worth monitoring.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the beginning stages, digital currencies are being used as a lower-cost alternative for existing payments,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n
A research report last week by Morgan Stanley argued that cryptocurrencies will have some impact on global transaction networks, but they won\u2019t be fully disruptive.<\/p>\n
One aspect that will slow the impact of cryptocurrencies, the analysts said, was the increasing amount of attention being paid by regulators as the market develops.<\/p>\n
Morgan Stanley also said that it will take time for new digital currencies to build up trust among consumers before they can be recognised consistently as a new way to pay for goods and services.<\/p>\n
Amid a constant flurry of new initial coin offerings (ICOs), it will be interesting to monitor which cryptocurrency networks are best placed to gain from the advances in transaction technology.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no doubt that investors are paying close attention to the new space.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings will become much more interesting when new business models and products emerge that leverage the unique attributes of digital currencies. When the cost of a transaction sent anywhere in the world approaches zero, it opens new possibilities for commerce we haven\u2019t even thought of yet,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n
Read more at https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com.au\/major-cryptocurrencies-are-seesawing-bitcoin-and-ethereum-remain-steady-2017-8#DTV2yCatHYZKpMdD.99<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While prices for Bitcoin and Ethereum have steadied in recent weeks, there have been notable moves in other large-cap cryptocurrencies as the market develops.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[216],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n