The first half of 2024 would likely be best remembered in the digital assets sphere for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) debut. While Bitcoin captured significant institutional interest, several lesser-known cryptocurrencies, especially memecoins, surged to new heights, stealing the spotlight from their more established counterparts.
According to CoinGecko, the market value of all cryptocurrencies rose by an astonishing $661 billion in the first six months of the year. Bitcoin accounted for $409 billion, reflecting a substantial 48% rise. This surge was largely driven by institutional investors who have warmed up to Bitcoin’s potential. However, tokens have little intrinsic value but wild price fluctuations driven by social media hype and speculative trading.
According to a recent report, Dogwifhat stood out with a 1,306% increase among the top-performing cryptocurrencies, bringing its market capitalization to $2.1 billion. PEPE, a token inspired by the meme frog often associated with fringe-right internet circles, which saw an 815% surge and a market cap reaching $5 billion.
Other notable performers included Artificial Superintelligence Alliance, which climbed 545% to a market cap of $3.6 billion, and Floki, named after Elon Musk’s Shiba Inu, which rose 392% to $1.6 billion. JasmyCoin and Arweave also made significant gains, up 343% and 188%, respectively. Even less celebrated tokens like Core and Bitget doubled their market values, while Bonk saw a 90% increase.
Interestingly, Shiba Inu-themed coins dominated the memecoin rally. Shiba Inu and Floki outperformed Bitcoin, posting gains of 67% and 418%, respectively. However, the most famous dog-based token, Dogecoin, experienced a relatively modest 35% increase.
DOG: The Rising Memecoin Challenging Dogecoin’s DominanceOther than memecoins, conventional cryptocurrencies also recorded significant rises. Ether, the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum network, increased by 51% due to rumors of possible ETF approval, similar to the case of Bitcoin. The market’s major coins also performed exceptionally well, with Binance Coin (BNB) rising by 81%.
Such is the case with memecoin, which gained popularity in the first half of 2024 as an example of the given and highly volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market. This is particularly evident with Bitcoin continuing to dominate the market, but the growth of these less famous tokens indicates a continuously changing environment. In the subsequent years of 2024, the dynamics of the existing and the new cryptocurrencies are expected to remain a major source of interest among investors and analysts.
