Topline
Bitcoin set several new records throughout 2024 and crossed the six-figure threshold for the first time, leading the way amid a broader crypto rally following Donald Trump’s election victory – but its breakthrough rise to $100,000 wasn’t even the most impressive outperformance of the year market by a cryptocurrency in 2024, thanks to several altcoins and meme coins also rising dramatically.
Bitcoin has been overtaken by several altcoins and meme coins this year, even as a cryptocurrency … [+]
Important facts
Bitcoin is up 47% since Election Day, adding about $1.2 trillion to its market cap this year (as of December 19), up 130% to just over $102,000.
But it was Pepe, a token named after the meme frog associated with far-right groups, that was the top performer among coins with a market cap of over $5 billion, up about 1,570%, according to CoinMarketCap increased.
SUI, the native token for the Sui blockchain network, is the next best performer with a gain of 509%, while Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency touted by Elon Musk in recent years, overtook Bitcoin with a rise of 333%, with the memes The coin has not seen any highs reached since the pandemic.
The token used by Ripple, a digital asset company co-founded by billionaires Chris Larsen and Jed McCaleb, also outperformed Bitcoin this year as XRP rose nearly 304%.
Stellar, used by the Stellar blockchain network, and Toncoin, the native cryptocurrency for a blockchain developed by Telegram, rose 233% and 155%, respectively, underperforming the Hedera network token, which gained about 248% .
Another Shiba Inu-inspired token, Shiba Inu, and Tronix’s cryptocurrency TRON have narrowly overtaken Bitcoin this year with gains of 150% and 155%, respectively.
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The 10 Best-Performing Cryptocurrencies in 2024 (Market Cap Over $5 Billion)
- Pepe: Up 1,570.7%, market cap $9 billion
- SUI: Up 509%, market cap $13.7 billion
- Dogecoin: up 333.1%, market cap $56.9 billion
- XRP: up 303.9%, market cap $142.3 billion
- Hedera: Up 247.7%, market cap $11.5 billion
- Stellar: Up 233.4%, market cap $12.9 billion
- Toncoin: up 155.6%, market cap $14.6 billion
- TRON: up 155.1%, market cap $23.7 billion
- Shiba Inu: up 150.1%, market cap $15.2 billion
- Bitcoin: up 135.9%, market cap $2 trillion
How much has the crypto market grown in 2024?
According to CoinGecko, the global crypto market’s total market value increased by about $1.8 trillion in 2024, rising from just under $1.8 trillion to $3.6 trillion on December 18. Bitcoin holds more than the majority of the market at 56.8% and was responsible for about two-thirds of the total market growth.
What are meme coins?
Meme coins are a form of cryptocurrency often associated with a viral internet joke, and their prices are often more volatile than any other token because they respond to moments in pop culture. Dogecoin rose in November after Trump announced that Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would head the Department of Government Efficiency, whose acronymized name bears the coin’s name. Musk then posted images of a “DOGE” logo and a Shiba Inu, apparently referring to Dogecoin, showing the dog’s face. Back in 2021, he welcomed Dogecoin on social media, sending the token to a high of nearly $0.70 before Musk’s comments on “Saturday Night Live” that the coin was “hype.” , causing its price to drop back to just over $0.05. Altcoins, or cryptocurrencies considered alternatives to Bitcoin, also tend to be more volatile, with some analysts saying the market is oversaturated.
How did Trump’s election boost crypto?
Trump has been endorsed by several billionaires with ties to the cryptocurrency industry, including Gemini co-founders Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss, as well as Ripple’s Larsen. Trump claimed he wanted to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet” and supported Bitcoin mining. His election victory sent Bitcoin to new record highs as the token surpassed the $80,000, $90,000 and $100,000 thresholds within a month of Election Day. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap ($418 billion), rose 43%, adding more than $118 billion to its capitalization. According to CoinGecko, the total market value of the global crypto market has increased by more than $1 trillion since Election Day.
Important background
The crypto market reached new highs in 2024, starting with the approval of the first Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the US by the Securities and Exchange Commission in January. Spot Bitcoin ETFs allow investors to invest in the cryptocurrency without paying higher fees associated with purchasing the token directly on exchanges like Coinbase. According to an analysis by Bernstein, this decision raised around $15 billion in capital within the first five months. Since then, the crypto market has benefited from taking center stage in the recent presidential election, including Trump’s embrace of the industry despite his previous criticism.
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