Two of the Best Non-Bitcoin Cryptocurrencies To Invest In 2024

Today’s cryptocurrency market comprises several thousand active cryptocurrencies with varying functions and mechanisms. The densely population market is the result of a continuous evolution in the crypto industry that began in 2009 when the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin. Although Bitcoin’s purpose was to operate as a digital peer-to-peer cash system, it has evolved into an asset that also functions as a store of value and an investment vehicle for people who can handle the risk of speculation.

The market consists of several altcoins that serve these same purposes as well as several others. In addition to their application as governance tokens, and other uses like staking and yield farming, altcoins power decentralized finance (DeFi). People looking to earn returns can do some research to choose one or more altcoins to invest in, some with even bigger returns than Bitcoin. The following are two examples:

Ether (ETH)

Ether is the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and has maintained that position for many years. It also has the second-highest dominance at 17%, an indication of its influence and significance in the crypto market. Ether runs on the Ethereum blockchain, a network that enables diverse functionality and powers decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts.

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Ether has benefited immensely from the ongoing crypto market rally, returning nearly 89% to investors since January. Its success is largely based on its adaptability and the ease with which crypto developers can create projects supported by the Ethereum blockchain. 

Ethereum is the underlying network powering nearly all of decentralized finance (DeFi). By the end of 2023, the DeFi market revenue is expected to hit $16.96 billion, with the average revenue per user at $2,026. Also, revenue in DeFi is expected to climb at an annual growth rate of 19.6% from 2023 to 2027. 

Furthermore, Ethereum is the preferred network for decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and their governance tokens. In addition, it is the most widely-used network for NFTs, mainly because it supports smart contracts and allows developers a lot of flexibility to create new applications and tokens.

At $2,254, ETH is below half of its $4,891 all-time high attained in 2021. However, projections already put ETH at an average price of $4,500 for next year, and a possible $6,500. Mythos Capital founder Ryan Sean Adams pointed out a few bullish factors in Ethereum’s favor, including its annualized profit at $2.7 billion, several layer-2 networks supporting scalability, 5.3% annual earnings for bond holders, the network’s energy-effective transition to Proof-of-Stake (PoS), and the likelihood that Ethereum gets a spot ETF soon.

Solana (SOL)

Launched in March 2020, the Solana network supports NFTs, dApps, and smart contracts. Currently trading at $62, SOL is well below its $260 all-time high also attained in 2021 during the last bull market. It is the sixth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and one of the most used platforms for dApps and NFTs after Ethereum. 

Solana has had a great year so far, filled with several periods of quick rallies. For instance, SOL recently jumped 50% in a few days last month, rising from $31.26 to $46.97. SOL’s year-to-date gain is even more impressive at nearly 537%. Furthermore, the asset has climbed more than 360% in the last year, 220% in three months, and more than 45% in one month.

There are several factors working in favor of SOL. Apart from the asset being one of the entire market’s top performers, SOL was built with scalability in mind. According to analytics platform Solana Compass, the network processed more than 4,300 transactions per second (TPS) over the last few hours, much lower than the 50,000 possible. In addition, the SOL blockchain is very cost-effective, with the average cost per transaction at $0.00025.

Like Ethereum, Solana is also attracting institutional players. Last month, Google Cloud announced its integration of the Solana network, allowing its data analytics service, BigQuery, to gain quick access to Solana-based data. In September, Visa expanded its stablecoin settlement to the Solana blockchain.

Conclusion: Investing in Altcoins in 2024

Current CoinGecko data shows more than 11,300 active cryptocurrencies in the sector. While a few of them have good metrics with the potential for impressive returns, ETH and SOL are two of the most promising. As Ethereum continues to provide a backbone for DeFi and NFTs, Solana will keep improving scalability via its low transaction costs and high throughput. Regardless of their individual metrics, all intending investors must do extensive research before putting money into either asset.

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