Top Cryptocurrencies in the World at the Beginning of 2023: Bitcoin Leads

Since the emergence of Bitcoin over a decade ago, many types of cryptocurrencies have sprung up, from Ethereum to Dogecoin. But which is currently the largest cryptocurrency in the world?

According to a Forbes report, there are 21,910 cryptocurrencies in the entire cryptocurrency market. Their total value reaches £697 billion or Rp12,949.56 trillion (using an exchange rate of Rp18,579/£).

Bitcoin (BTC) is currently the largest cryptocurrency. Forbes notes that Bitcoin's market capitalization reached £267.1 billion or Rp4,962.45 trillion as of January 3, 2023.

Bitcoin was created by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009. Like most cryptocurrencies, BTC operates on a blockchain, a distributed ledger of transactions across a network of thousands of computers. Bitcoin is considered secure and protected from fraud due to its digital ledger technology.

The price of Bitcoin has skyrocketed in recent years. According to Forbes, the price of one Bitcoin was £370 in May 2016. However, the price of one Bitcoin is now around £13,877 as of January 3, 2023, representing a growth of 3,651%.

Next, Ethereum (ETH) ranks second with a market capitalization of £123.3 billion or Rp2,290.79 trillion.

Forbes states that Ethereum is a favorite among developers of cryptocurrency and blockchain platform programs due to its potential applications.

Furthermore, Ethereum's value growth has been extraordinary. From April 2016 to January 2023, its price rose from around £8 to around £1,008, a surge of approximately 12,500%.

Below are the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization according to Forbes as of January 3, 2023:

1. Bitcoin (BTC): £267.1 billion
2. Ethereum (ETH): £123.3 billion
3. Tether (USDT): £55.1 billion
4. US Dollar Coin (USDC): £37.2 billion
5. Binance Coin (BNB): £32.6 billion
6. XRP (XRP): £14.42 billion
7. Binance USD (BUSD): £13.7 billion
8. Dogecoin (DOGE): £7.85 billion
9. Cardano (ADA): £7.3 billion
10. Polygon (MATIC): £5.7 billion