It’s been a rough year for investors in cryptocurrency. The massive sell-offs in recent months have erased billions of wealth from the market. For those who believe in the future of digital assets, though, the current market downturn is an opportunity to separate the wheat from the chaff and assess the cryptos to avoid.
Cryptos’ extreme volatility and speculative nature have been on full display over the past few months. Debilitating headwinds have hit risky assets since the start of the year, including cryptos. Nevertheless, cryptos with multiple use-cases boast a strong long-term bull case.
There is a truckload of cryptocurrencies out there, but only a few will survive over the long term. Having said that, let’s look at some cryptos to avoid.
| BTT | BitTorrent | $0.001418 |
| SHIB | Shiba Inu | $0.000011 |
| OMG | OMG Network | $2.6585 |
| XRP | XRP | $0.400312 |
| CVC | Civic | $0.1893 |
| TRX | Tron | $0.080907 |
| ZRX | ox | $0.405172 |
Cryptos to Avoid: BitTorrent (BTT-USD)
A lot of you would be familiar with BitTorrent (CCC:BTT-USD), the popular peer-to-peer file-sharing network. However, most of you would be unaware of its namesake cryptocurrency, which performed remarkably well in spurts last year. However, BTT-USD is far from being an attractive choice due to limited real-world utility
The whole premise behind BTT is for users to buy and spend the token for faster download speeds. BitTorrent will collect revenues each time a user spends BTT, and investors will find their holdings to appreciate over time.
Though a ton of users use the platform, despite its notoriety, it’s unlikely to gain widespread recognition. BTT offers hardly any use-cases, and the platform’s reputation will limit its acceptance. Therefore, it’s tough to bet on such a crypto at this time.
Shiba Inu (SHIB-USD)
The crypto market produced several winners, but perhaps nothing comes close to the unfathomable gains of meme coin Shiba Inu (CCC:SHIB-USD). SHIB-USD registered a gain of over 100,000,000% in ten months starting Jan 1 last year.
Unlike other meme tokens, Shiba offers some real-world utility that could potentially bump its price in the coming years. It can enable smart contracts, which means it could be more than just a store of value.
Moreover, its developers launched a decentralized exchange called ShibaSwap to stake their coins and earn rewards. Additionally, they also announced the release of an NFT called Shiboshi.
Though these developments may seem like a big deal, the reality is they’re not. Countless other cryptocurrencies are offering these features more cost-effectively than SHIB. Therefore, there’s not much of a long-term case for SHIB either.
OMG Network (OMG-USD)
OMG Network (CCC:OMG-USD) is another altcoin that made great strides last year. It is essentially an Ethereum (ETH-USD) “value transfer” network that effectively allows people to move money on blockchain networks quicker without compromising security.
Moreover, it works with banks and creates products that appeal to existing and new banking customers. Also, its partner in Enya launched the Boba Network, an advanced layer two solution capable of processing thousands of transactions a second cost-effectively.
However, as we have seen over the past several months, with OMG’s high trading volumes, investors aren’t interested in using it as a store of value. It’s changing hands in hardly a few minutes, at any rate. Therefore, you should probably treat it like gambling chips at a casino.
XRP (XRP-USD)
XRP (XRP-USD) tussle with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has been well-documented. As a consequence, XRP-USD hasn’t snapped back to its old highs like its peers.
Ripple’s case against the SEC is seemingly in its favor but does a win guarantee mainstream adoption of the crypto?
For RippleLabs, the developers behind XRP, the priority is RippleNet. RippleNet is a worldwide payments platform that effectively allows entities to make low-cost payments across 40 different countries.
The payment platform doesn’t need to use XRP to increase adoption, although it plans to increase adoption. Therefore, it’s tough to build a long-term case for XRP-USD at this time.
Cryptos to Avoid: Civic (CVC-USD)
Civic (CCC:CVC-USD) is a leading “blockchain-based identity management solution” It essentially provides users and businesses the ability to manage and protect personal information. The platform was designed to reimagine ID verification processes and allows users greater privacy and control.
Solana-based identity management provides companies and individuals with Self-Sovereign Identity (SSID). Hence, there’s a utility with the Civic Platform, as it effectively tackles the frustrating Know Your Customer (KYC) nightmare for businesses and users.
It could have a lot of relevance in the eCommerce realm as it becomes more popular over time. Nevertheless, it hasn’t gained substantial traction as yet, as it ranks below the top 150 cryptocurrencies in terms of market capitalization.
Tron (TRX-USD)
Tron (TRX-USD) is an open-source blockchain network capable of running smart contracts and building decentralized applications. Since it came into existence, it has built a robust ecosystem to support digital projects and applications.
Founded by one of the most controversial figures in the crypto world Justin Sun, TRON intends to become a major player in the sector through its focus on multiple verticals.
Despite the use-cases, TRON has been at the center of multiple controversies. A few months ago, in March, entertainment website The Verge published a scathing investigative report on Mr. Sun, highlighting his fraudulent practices.
Additionally, the platform has been criticized for plagiarizing from other protocols’ white papers. Back in 2018, the CEO of Protocol talked about how TRON has copied portions of their crypto project’s white papers. Hence, the shady reputation of Mr. Sun and TRON should limit its mainstream acceptance.
Cryptos to Avoid: 0x (ZRX-USD)
0x (CCC:ZRX-USD) allows users to effectively trade cryptos across different blockchains, searching for the best deal for every transaction.
Over the past few months, its development team has successfully attracted some major players in the crypto space, including NFT marketplace OpenSea and crypto exchange Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN).
The protocol primarily works as a liquidity aggregator to compare prices on multiple decentralized exchanges. Its crypto trading platform, called Matcha, allows you to enter a trade and find the best prices. ZRX is the native token on the platform.
Nevertheless, there are plenty of weaknesses with the platform. Firstly, crypto staking is one of the most popular ways for investors to generate income, a feature that is unavailable with 0x.
Additionally, it has plenty of competition in the field, and ZRX is mainly using a governance token. Hence, it’s hard to foresee a growth runway for the coin.
On the date of publication, Muslim Farooque did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines
