What Are The Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In Philippines?

Top 10 Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In Philippines. Photo KnowInsiders

The Philippines is one of the world’s fastest adopters of cryptocurrency, new reports show. According to data, the pandemic has fuelled the trend, with Filipinos releasing the value of crypto as an investment and income generating currency.

What is Cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency is digital money—it’s virtual and has no physical form. Don’t confuse it with the money in your e-wallet or online banking account, as it is tied to real physical coins or bills.

Because cryptocurrency is purely digital, this means that you can store it online and even in small, specially designed hardware. And since it doesn’t require a bank or any middleman, you can easily send your digital money to anyone, anytime, anywhere.

How Does Cryptocurrency Work?

Cryptocurrencies work through blockchain technology. Blockchain is a special kind of database, and it differs from traditional databases when it comes to storing data. Traditional databases are centralized, meaning only select people can access them. Blockchain, on the other hand, allows all participants to view the records and all the changes that happen in the database.

To understand how blockchain works in the context of cryptocurrency, let’s take a look at this example. You buy a laptop from a shop using a credit or debit card. The bank then subtracts the money from your account and then updates your records. Only you and the bank have the access to your transaction records.

But if you buy a laptop from the shop using cryptocurrency, here is what will happen. Your transaction data will be stored in a block, which is technically a list of other transactions made by other people. The block where your transaction is listed will then be chained to previous blocks.

With this setup, you can think of blockchain as a global ledger that records all the transactions of the people who are using the same cryptocurrency. This ledger also makes sure that all the transactions that go to it, from past to present and to future, are all valid.

Cryptocurrency to become mainstream in the Philippines

Photo cryptonomist

A rise in crypto-friendly technology in the country has also facilitated it’s uptake, which means the Philippines is now on a par with Vietnam and Nigeria.

Reports by consensus experts from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) earlier this month show that gaming rewards, BTC, ATM networks and rural banking integration are ‘reliable early indicators’ for the upsurge that makes crypto growth in the Philippines the world’s third-fastest growing sector.

The The Fintech Philippines Association and European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines have reported similar findings.

Bitcoin first became popular in the Philippines 2017, when its value skyrocketed from $1,000 to over $19,000 in the space of a few months. Since then, BSP has installed a reliable platform that protects crypto customers and also encourages bitcoin uptake, which is still in a nascent stage.

As of December 2020, BSP has also opened up channels with 17 virtual currency exchanges that are industry compliant.

Is Cryptocurrency Legal in the Philippines - Cryptocurrency Laws

Yes. Cryptocurrencies are regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). In fact, 17 virtual currency exchanges are registered with the BSP and authorized to operate in the Philippines.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, i.e., the Philippines Central Bank) has issued guidelines concerning virtual currencies (VCs). Specifically, these Guidelines provide that since VCs are not backed by a central bank or a particular commodity and are not guaranteed by any country, they are not legal tender.

However, since they are used as a conduit to provide certain financial services, such as remittances and payment transactions, entities that provide such services using VCs must register with the BSP and adopt adequate measures to mitigate and manage risks associated with such currencies.

In addition, the Guidelines provide for penalties applicable to VC entities that conduct operations without the appropriate authorization from the BSP.

Cryptocurrency in the Philippines: What are the Options for Investment?

If you’re planning to invest in cryptocurrencies, know that it comes in many different forms. Here are the most popular digital currencies today.

Bitcoin

Launched in 2009, Bitcoin is perhaps the most popular cryptocurrency out there. As of this writing, it has a market capitalization worth more than USD 685 billion. It doesn’t come cheap though, as a single coin currently costs over USD 36,000. That’s equivalent to more than PHP 1.7 million.

Many investors and experts consider Bitcoin to be the first and original cryptocurrency. Developed by a programmer under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin has decentralized digital currencies and created a disruption in the financial world.

Ether

Ether is the digital money of the cryptocurrency network Ethereum. It is the second largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization worth over USD 266 billion. One ether costs around USD 2,200. If you’re a developer who builds applications using the Ethereum platform, you can also use ether to run commands.

XRP

XRP is the digital currency of the company and cryptocurrency network called Ripple. Currently, it has a market cap of over USD 39.5 billion and is priced at USD 0.86 per coin. Compared to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, XRP transactions are much faster and cheaper.

Litecoin

While many call Bitcoin the gold of the digital money world, Litecoin is touted as the silver cryptocurrency. It was released in 2011 to compete with Bitcoin. It was also developed to process transactions faster than Bitcoin. At present, Litecoin has a market cap of more than USD 10 billion. One Litecoin is currently pegged at USD 161.

Dogecoin

Developed in 2013, the meme-inspired Dogecoin has enjoyed some popularity in recent months, thanks to a series of tweets from Elon Musk.

Currently, Dogecoin has a market cap of more than USD 43 billion, and each coin costs USD 0.33.

Top 10 most popular cryptocurrencies in Philippines

1. Binance Coin (BNB)

Binance's unique ecosystem of decentralised blockchain-based networks catapulted its token to becoming the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation in 2021.

2. Bitcoin (BTC)

The market bellwether and the world's biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, BTC witnessed its ATH (all-time high) of US$68,521 in November 2021.

3. Tether (USDT)

Photo tapchibitcoin

The company behind Tether in October was fined US$41 million by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission on charges that it misled investors for years by falsely claiming the stablecoin was fully backed at all times by US dollars and other fiat currencies.

4. Ripple (XRP)

As the Ripple vs US Securities and Exchange Commission legal battle enters its conclusive stretch, several big-time investors have bet big on a win for not just XRP, but for the entire crypto universe.

5. Uniswap (UNI)

Photo Coin62

Uniswap is both a cryptocurrency and a decentralised exchange. One of the biggest decentralised exchanges in the world, Uniswap failed to enthuse investors this year, although it remains a top 20 cryptocurrency by market capitalisation.

6. Shiba Inu (SHIB)

Bizarre fluctuations in its price notwithstanding, it must count for something that Shiba Inu has nearly 300,000 more Twitter followers than Ethereum.

7. Ethereum (ETH)

Billed as the Bitcoin-killer, Ethereum saw massive growth in ancillary sectors such as DeFi, NFTs and the metaverse, and also hit its ATH this year.

8. Dogecoin (DOGE)

Photo VTV

Interest in this meme coin seems to rise and fall with each Elon Musk tweet and Dogecoin still seems to have the Tesla founder's firm backing.

9. Polkadot (DOT)

Photo blogtienao

Even as the value has declined in the last month, the number of Polkadot stakers has continued to climb. Although it is now down some 50% from its peak, the crypto is still up an incredible 560% in the last year.

10. Cardano (ADA)

Faithfuls waited with bated breath for smart contracts to become active on the Cardano blockchain, but the new functionality failed to send the price to the moon.

READ MORE: Latest Prediction for Prices of Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies

5 Useful Tips as a Starter in Bitcoin investment

Know that Bitcoin investment = Investment in Commodities:

Just like the established investments you’ve to know before, may it be from food, metals, or market exchanges, Bitcoin is also an investment in the form of cryptocurrencies. Investors use Bitcoin to make transactions on the internet and do bidding as well as selling.

Bitcoins from all around the globe are rare:

Just like any other things, such as gold, that are difficult to find, the same applies to Bitcoins for there are only 21 million Bitcoins available from all over the globe, making it more valuable and will probably cause higher for trading in the next years to come.

Invest to Lose:

This means that never gamble an amount of money you’re not ready to lose. Since it’s a risky investment yet rewarding if you’ll put a lot of effort and studying into it, always bear in mind that you should only invest what you’re willing to lose.

Save it on your Wallet:

Do not ever leave your Bitcoins on the exchange, instead have them stored in your wallet. There are different Bitcoin wallets that you may choose from and you may always opt-out for the one that you’re comfortable with and you trust.

Be Bitcoins Wise:

Do not buy Bitcoins in one trade. You may buy a specific amount every month or throughout the year so in that way,, you may minimize and monitor the Bitcoins you’ve bought and sell.

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