The idea of anonymous cryptographic electronic money had long since been postulated, but it wasn’t until 2009 that the decentralized cryptocurrency Bitcoin was first created. Namecoin, Litecoin, and Peercoin followed in the proceeding years, and cryptocurrency began to gain momentum.
By the end of 2013, there were over 50 different cryptocurrencies. By the end of 2014, this figure had increased by approximately 10x to over 500.
Today, there are over 10,000 cryptocurrencies in circulation.
But how did the financial landscape reach this point? And where is it heading?
This roundup will reveal key facts and figures on the state of crypto right now.
Here’s a summary of what you’ll find below:
Crypto Space Statistics (Top Picks)
There are 17,134 total cryptocurrencies.
The total market cap of all cryptocurrencies is $1.32 trillion.
The trading volume of all cryptocurrencies per 24 hours is currently $172 billion.
Bitcoin has the highest current market cap at approximately $650 billion – around 3x its closest rival, Ethereum.
Two of the top 10 cryptocurrencies are directly pegged to USD value – Tether, USDC.
Approximately 8% of the US population trades cryptocurrency.
As a continent, Asia has over 4x more cryptocurrency users than any other continent.
95% of crypto holders/crypto-curious people are aware of Bitcoin.
Growth Of Cryptocurrency Over Time
In just over a decade, cryptocurrency has exploded onto the scene and has grown at an ever-increasing rate. The following section will highlight some of its dramatic growth with snapshots of the decentralized finance landscape at various points in time.
Before we get into that, here is a quick overview of the total number of legit cryptocurrencies listed on CoinMarketCap from 2013 to today:
2013
In April 2013, there were just seven cryptocurrencies reported by Coin Market Cap. Bitcoin led the way in terms of market capitalization with almost 20x the value of any other cryptocurrency.
2014
Fast-forward a year and a half to November 2014, and there were 513 cryptocurrencies in existence.
Bitcoin remained the dominant force, now with a market cap of around $5.13 billion. Only Litecoin($122.63 million market cap) and Peercoin ($16.26 million market cap) remained in the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap.
The rest of the original seven had made way for the likes of XRP ($346.22 million market cap) and Dogecoin ($23.30 million market cap).
At this stage, Bitcoin’s price had more than doubled to $378.05. And approximately 76,000 merchants accepted Bitcoin worldwide.
2015
One year later, the cryptocurrency landscape hadn’t changed so drastically. Nevertheless, there were 564cryptocurrencies at the end of November 2015.
Bitcoin’s market cap increased to over $5.5 billion, while November 2014’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, XRP, fell to approximately $144.18 million.
In total, seven of November 2014’s largest cryptos by market cap remained in the top 10 a year later. These were:
Bitcoin - Approximately $406 million market cap increase
Litecoin - Approximately $37 million market cap increase
XRP - Approximately $202 million market cap decrease
Bitshares - Approximately $39 million market cap decrease
Dogecoin - Approximately $10 million market cap decrease
Peercoin - Approximately $6 million market cap decrease
Dash - Approximately $1 million market cap increase
The most notable newcomer to the top ten wasEthereum with a market cap of $65.98 million.
2016
By the end of 2016, there were 663 cryptocurrencies in existence.
Bitcoin’s price reached a three-year high of almost $900, increasing nearly 3x on November 2015’s price.
The best-performing cryptocurrencies by market cap increase for the year were as follows:
Bitcoin ($14.59 billion) - Market cap increase of approximately 2.5x
Ethereum ($638 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 8x
Ripple ($232 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 1.1x
Litecoin ($212 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 1.5x
Monero ($134 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 28x
Ethereum Classic ($91 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 2x
Dash ($71 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 4.5x
2017
By mid-2017 (April 30th to be exact) a further 126 cryptocurrencies were now being traded, bringing the total number up to 789.
Ethereum’s market cap had skyrocketed more than 1000% in just four months to over $7.2 billion. Likewise, XRP also saw a large increase from approximately $232 million to $1.96 billion.
Despite the healthy growth, there were (and are) several factors keeping cryptocurrency from mass adoption.
2018
A year later, the number of cryptocurrencies had surged to more than double. The success of blockchain technology and varied use of coins continued to lead to further market growth.
By the end of 2018, there were 2,073cryptocurrencies. And 12 of those had a market cap of over $1 billion.
2014
Fast-forward a year and a half to November 2014, and there were 513 cryptocurrencies in existence.
Bitcoin remained the dominant force, now with a market cap of around $5.13 billion. Only Litecoin($122.63 million market cap) and Peercoin ($16.26 million market cap) remained in the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap.
The rest of the original seven had made way for the likes of XRP ($346.22 million market cap) and Dogecoin ($23.30 million market cap).
At this stage, Bitcoin’s price had more than doubled to $378.05. And approximately 76,000 merchants accepted Bitcoin worldwide.
2015
One year later, the cryptocurrency landscape hadn’t changed so drastically. Nevertheless, there were 564cryptocurrencies at the end of November 2015.
Bitcoin’s market cap increased to over $5.5 billion, while November 2014’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, XRP, fell to approximately $144.18 million.
In total, seven of November 2014’s largest cryptos by market cap remained in the top 10 a year later. These were:
Bitcoin - Approximately $406 million market cap increase
Litecoin - Approximately $37 million market cap increase
XRP - Approximately $202 million market cap decrease
Bitshares - Approximately $39 million market cap decrease
Dogecoin - Approximately $10 million market cap decrease
Peercoin - Approximately $6 million market cap decrease
Dash - Approximately $1 million market cap increase
The most notable newcomer to the top ten wasEthereum with a market cap of $65.98 million.
2016
By the end of 2016, there were 663 cryptocurrencies in existence.
Bitcoin’s price reached a three-year high of almost $900, increasing nearly 3x on November 2015’s price.
The best-performing cryptocurrencies by market cap increase for the year were as follows:
Bitcoin ($14.59 billion) - Market cap increase of approximately 2.5x
Ethereum ($638 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 8x
Ripple ($232 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 1.1x
Litecoin ($212 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 1.5x
Monero ($134 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 28x
Ethereum Classic ($91 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 2x
Dash ($71 million) - Market cap increase of approximately 4.5x
2017
By mid-2017 (April 30th to be exact) a further 126 cryptocurrencies were now being traded, bringing the total number up to 789.
Ethereum’s market cap had skyrocketed more than 1000% in just four months to over $7.2 billion. Likewise, XRP also saw a large increase from approximately $232 million to $1.96 billion.
Despite the healthy growth, there were (and are) several factors keeping cryptocurrency from mass adoption.
2018
A year later, the number of cryptocurrencies had surged to more than double. The success of blockchain technology and varied use of coins continued to lead to further market growth.
By the end of 2018, there were 2,073cryptocurrencies. And 12 of those had a market cap of over $1 billion.
Top 5 Countries by Cryptocurrency Usage
1. India - Approximately 94 million crypto users
2. China - Approximately 59 million crypto users
3. US - Approximately 53 million crypto users
4. Vietnam - Approximately 21 million crypto users
5. Pakistan - Approximately 16 million crypto users
