- The cryptocurrency rankings reflect the changing nature of the cryptocurrency space
- Older proof-of-work coins are slipping down and DeFi coins are taking their place
- Both Bitcoin forks are now outside the top 10, with BSV almost out of the top 20
If you want to see the changing nature of the cryptocurrency space, just look at the cryptocurrency rankings. The cryptocurrency rankings, which of course only reflect price and not adoption or usage of the platforms per se, offer a birds eye view of how the space is changing, and the past few months have seen DeFi really shake things up.
Proof-of-Work Coins Slipping Down Cryptocurrency Rankings
Bitcoin has of course been top of the cryptocurrency rankings and will probably never leave top spot, while Ethereum has been a fixture in second place since it claimed the spot in February 2016. But everything underneath that has been a source of constant change, and none more so than in 2021.
XRP had already surrendered third place to USDT before its legal problems with the Securities and Exchange Commission, but it has since slipped a place further, with Cardano (ADA) taking fourth spot. In a further sign of how things are changing, proof-of-work coins Litecoin (LTC), Monero (XMR), Dash (DASH) and the Bitcoin forks have surrendered positions in the top 10 to the DeFi movement, with Polkadot (DOT) and Chainlink (LINK) cementing spots in the top 10 and others hot on their heels.
Bitcoin Forks Both Outside Top 10 as DeFi Reigns
Bitcoin Cash has lost its top 10 place thanks to the recent resurgence by Dogecoin (DOGE), while Bitcoin SV (BSV) continues to flounder, currently in 17th and threatening to drop out of the top 20. DeFi darlings Uniswap (UNI) and AAVE (AAVE) have already overtaken it, while Elrond (EGLD) and Cosmos (ATOM) are not far behind. Just six months ago, these DeFi coins were never on the radar.
Of course the cryptocurrency rankings aren’t the be all and end all of the cryptocurrency ecosystem, but they do give an indication of shifting trends in the crypto space, and from this year alone we can already see that the DeFi is tearing the blockchain old guard to shreds, and they will have a job staying relevant unless they adapt to match this emerging threat.
