Bitcoin’s record year is just a part of the big story The Chart of the Week is a weekly Visual Capitalist feature on Fridays.Bitcoin is the original cryptocurrency, and its meteoric rise has made it a mainstay of conversation for investors, media, and technologists alike.In fact, the innovation of the blockchain is changing entire markets, while causing ripples with central banks and the financial industry.At time of publication, the bitcoin price now hovers near US$2,200, a massive increase from this time last year.But the true impact of Bitcoin is actually far more reaching than this – it’s actually helped to birth new markets for over 800 other cryptocurrencies and assets that are available for online trading.And while the market for bitcoins is worth nearly $40 billion itself, the rest of these cryptocurrencies are actually worth even more in combination.For the first time since Bitcoin was founded, it now makes up the minority of the entire cryptocurrency market at about 47.9% of all coins and assets.

So what are the other altcoins that make up the rest of this universe, and where did they come from?Litecoin is one of the first altcoins, and it is nearly identical to Bitcoin after being “forked” in 2011.ghs bitcoin chartLitecoin aims to process blocks 4x faster than Bitcoin to speed up transaction confirmation time, though this creates several other challenges as well.františek fuka bitcoin soudAt time of writing, Litecoin’s market capitalization is worth $1.3 billion.bitcoin flush keypoolEthereum, launched in 2015, is the largest coin by market capitalization aside from Bitcoin.bitcoin hex colorHowever, it is also quite different.comprar bitcoin hoy

While Bitcoin is designed to be a payments protocol first, Ethereum enables developers to build and deploy decentralized applications, while also enabling smart contracts.mercado bitcoin hojeThe tokens used to power the network are called Ether, but they can also be traded online.At time of writing, Ethereum’s market capitalization is $15.4 billion.Also interesting: the Ethereum network actually split into two in 2016.It’s a complicated situation, but read about it here.There is now a separate Ethereum, based on the original Ethereum blockchain, trading as “Ethereum Classic” with its own market capitalization of $1.4 billion.Ripple (XRP) is the native currency of the Ripple Protocol – a broader catch-all for an open-source, global exchange.It’s already being used by banks such as Santander, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UBS, and RBC.It solves a different problem than Bitcoin, allowing for settling payments between different currencies and even different payment systems.

Today, Ripple’s native coin (XRP) has a market cap of $10.9 billion.With over 800+ altcoins or assets out there, there’s plenty of information to absorb.Here’s a short 20-minute course on the history of altcoins that might provide useful context, as well as in-depth explanations of Ethereum and Ripple that may help you learn about the important parts of a rapidly growing altcoin universe.Article by Jeff Desjardins, Visual CapitalistYou are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer.The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security.ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating indiv idual securities.If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK.If you do not, click Cancel.Never miss a great news story!Get instant notifications from Economic TimesAllowNot nowSENSEX31,138-152.53NIFTY 509,575-55.05GOLD (MCX) (Rs/10g.)28,733104.00USD/INR64.52-0.08PortfolioStocksMFETFGet ET Markets in your own languageDOWNLOAD THE APP NOWCHOOSE LANGUAGEENGENG - EnglishHIN - हिन्दीGUJ - ગુજરાતીMAR - मराठीBEN - বাংলা KAN - ಕನ್ನಡORI - ଓଡିଆTEL - తెలుగుTAM - தமிழ்Bitcoin soars above $2,400 to all-time high|READ MORE ON » JapanforexBitcoinBitcoin hit a fresh record high as its demand soared with creation of new tokens.

Digital currency bitcoin hit a fresh record high on Wednesday, surging above $2,400, as demand for crypto-assets soared with the creation of new tokens to raise funding for start-ups using blockchain technology.Blockchain, the underlying technology behind bitcoin, is a financial ledger maintained by a network of computers that can track the movement of any asset without the need for a central regulator.Bitcoin hit a record of $2,409 on the BitStamp platform and was last up 4.3 per cent at $2,363.So far this year, the price of bitcoin has more than doubled.A key reason for bitcoin's dominance in the nefarious online underworld, say technologists and cybercrime experts, is its size - the total value of all bitcoins in circulation is more than twice that of the nearest of hundreds of rivals.Also, a big part of bitcoin's recent surge is the increase in demand for other digital currencies being sold in so-called "initial coin offerings", or ICOs.Under ICOs, blockchain start-ups sell their tokens directly to the public to raise capital without any regulatory oversight.

"Bitcoin up 100 per cent in under 2 months.Shanghai down almost 10 per cent same timeframe, compared to most global stocks up.Probably not a coincidence!", Jeffrey Gundlach, chief executive at DoubleLine Capital tweeted on Tuesday.Strong demand for bitcoins in Japan has also fueled the rise of the virtual currency that can be moved like money around the world quickly and anonymously without the need for a central authority.1Bitcoin soars above $2,400 to all-time highRupee stumbles on oil worries, hits fresh 3-week low at 64.59China's yuan set for worst week since March on rising corporate dollar demandDollar dips as traders await signals on more Fed hikesRupee opens 3 paise higher against US dollar at 64.56Dollar rally over as Europe recoversRupee dives to 3-week low of 64.59 against dollarDollar five-year super-cycle is over: BarclaysChina's yuan eases on weaker fix, seasonal corporate dollar demandDollar edges away from 3-week high vs yen; kiwi firm after RBNZRupee extends fall, opens at 64.53 against US dollar