It's not just Bitcoin: 5 'altcoins' riding the cryptocurrency wave

The crypto world has been thriving in recent months, bringing an end to a long period of hardship. This year alone, Bitcoin has grown by 50%, reaching an all-time high of $72,000. But it isn’t just Bitcoin that’s seeing a meteoric rise. Other cryptocurrencies have also grown by more 100% over the past year, marking the end of a long crypto winter plagued by a string of crypto exchange collapses, scandals, and bankruptcies.

All this positivity in the crypto market can be attributed to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of 11 Bitcoin ETFs in January and the subsequent listing of some Bitcoin-linked securities on the U.K. stock market.

Check out the slideshow above for more on the cryptocurrencies riding the Bitcoin wave.

Ether (ETH), the native token of the second-biggest blockchain network, Ethereum, has crossed the $4,000 mark for the first time since 2021. In the past year, the cryptocurrency has grown by over 178% and is close to its all-time high of $4,878, according to the cryptocurrency tracking website CoinGecko.

The Ethereum network, which is the home of most decentralized finance (DeFi) projects, went through a major upgrade in September 2022, also known as the Merge. This week, the blockchain network will go through another important upgrade, known as Dencun, which is expected to improve the performance of the network.

Why does this matter? Enhancement and scalability in the overall blockchain network significantly reduce transaction fees, which helps cryptocurrency’s overall acceptance and hence increases its price.

If you’d invested in Shiba Inu (SHIB) in November 2020 for $1, you would have earned a mind-boggling return of 58228920%. The Dogecoin rival has challenged meme coins for market share, having surged nearly 221% over the past year and currently trading at $0.00003045. Recently, the memecoin saw a surge in price because it had burned some of its tokens. In the crypto world, the term “burning” refers to the act of removing tokens from circulation. It decreases the supply of the tokens, thus increasing their price.

Solana, an Ethereum alternative, gained over 740% in price after a year of obstacles. Solana (SOL) has been referred to as a “Sam Coin” due to its close ties with former FTX CEO and convicted fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried, who had invested heavily in the Solana ecosystem. Following the FTX collapse, the cryptocurrency experienced a 90% drop in value, raising concerns about its future.

However, after collaborating with another blockchain network, Filecoin, Solana has improved its performance and regained its place among the top cryptocurrencies. This, combined with the recent Bitcoin rally, led to a price increase, with the cryptocurrency currently hovering around $147.

Despite the prolonged bearish market, the Cardano blockchain network was able to be part of various projects. Earlier this week, Dubai Police partnered with the Cardano blockchain network to securely share criminal investigation data.

Cardano (ADA) is currently trading at $0.72, depicting a bullish pattern and an increase of 136% over the year. It is showing great potential as it sits comfortably above its 200-week moving average, accompanied by a surge in Bitcoin. Currently, the investors are aiming for a surge in the price, with hopes of reaching $1 or higher.