What Are The Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In India - Top 10

Rosemary December 26, 2021 | 21:04

India is believed to have one of the biggest crypto markets in the world. What cryptocurrencies are the most popular in India now?

Top 10 Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In India. Photo KnowInsiders

Cryptocurrencies have been popularly growing day by day, not just simply buying and holding, but is going beyond that. Whether it be Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Ripple’s XRP, these top cryptocurrencies are being slowly accepted as payment on online ‘bridge’ services like shopping.io, which enables purchases from sites such as Amazon or eBay. Cryptocurrencies are based on blockchain technology, which is a cryptographically secured ledger of all the transactions that are conducted. For this reason, people are excited to invest in something that permits decentralized, trusted transactions even when not controlled by a bank or a country. And most of the Indians are also looking towards cryptos as a potential currency.

India’s cryptocurrency market 2021

The year 2021 witnessed a massive rise in crypto adoption in the country, with reports claiming there might be millions of crypto investors in India. The number of crypto exchanges operating in India has also proliferated in recent months. However, there is no official data available on this as the Government has not started tracking the sector. Crypto trading and investing activities are currently being carried out through private centralised and decentralised exchanges.

According to a Nasscom report, around $6.6 billion has been invested into digital assets by over 15 million retail investors in India. As many as 75% of

Meanwhile, policy uncertainties around cryptocurrencies in India are yet to be over. The Government is expected to introduce a bill to regulate cryptocurrency transactions and crypto exchanges in the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament.

It has been reported that Government may ask the stocks and commodity markets regulator SEBI to oversee cryptocurrencies and regulate crypto exchanges operating in India. The upcoming Bill may also do away with the use of the word ‘currency for crypto’ and legalise the use of ‘crypto assets’ only.

Why are people investing in cryptocurrencies?

Cryptocurrencies are based on blockchain technology – a cryptographically secured ledger of all transactions conducted. That allows for decentralised, trusted transactions even when not controlled by a country or bank.

Just like one can trade on the value of fiat currencies, like the dollar or the rupee, as well as for company shares on the stock market — they can also trade on the value of cryptocurrencies on a crypto exchange. Exchanges based out of India, like WazirX, not only helps match buyers and sellers, but lets users trade or sell to book profits in the Indian rupee.

Cryptocurrencies, and their market value, is a global phenomenon. However, trading volumes — how much of a particular cryptocurrency is being bought and sold — varies from country to country, and from exchange to exchange.

Coinmarketcap, for instance, shows that trading volume in the past 24 hours has been the highest for Tether. WazirX, on the other hand, shows that Indians are trading more Bitcoin than they are Tether.

Indians who own cryptocurrency are mostly in the age bracket of 21 to 35 and live in metro cities, a recent study conducted by Kantar revealed. Men and women between the age group of 21 to 55 from Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Indore, Patna, Jaipur and Lucknow were interviewed for the survey, which found that most Indians are currently trying to better understand how cryptocurrency works and whether it is worth the investment.

Why is the Indian government cracking down on cryptocurrency?

India is preparing to clamp down on its booming cryptocurrency trade with a new law likely to be introduced in parliament this month.

Details of the legislation remain unclear, but the government wants to ban all private digital currencies, with some exceptions.

India hopes that a ban would pave the way for the Reserve Bank of India — the country's central bank — to gain control over digital money, despite concerns over the lack of advanced data protection laws.

The central bank has repeatedly warned cryptocurrency could pose "serious concerns on macroeconomic and financial stability," while Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November said cryptocurrencies could "spoil our youth."

The government has also warned that unregulated crypto markets could become avenues for money laundering, fraud and terror financing.

At least eight cases of cryptocurrency-related frauds are under investigation by the Directorate of Enforcement, India's agency tasked with fighting financial crime.

But despite warnings from the government and details of the planned bill still in the shadows, many cryptocurrency investors are hoping they will still be able to trade.

"Even if there are restrictions imposed by the government, I hold multiple trading accounts in domestic, as well as foreign exchanges," Pritha Sengupta, a 25-year-old entrepreneur, told DW.

"Some of my trades have resulted in very attractive returns... almost over 500 times and bank deposits hardly give us less than 7% in a year," Pritha added.

Also unfazed by government warnings, graduate Manisha Singh insists the crypto market is a "great way to build up wealth" in India.

"The best part is that it helps us invest in small amounts. I have sold bitcoins at a profit," Singh told DW.

Top 10 Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In India

1.Bitcoin / BTC

2.Tether / USDT

3.Shiba Inu / SHIB

4.Ethereum / ETH

5.WazirX / WRX

6.Dogecoin / DOGE

7.Tron / TRX

8.Polygon / MATIC

9.Cardano / ADA

10.Solana / SOL

1.Bitcoin / BTC

Photo VTV

Bitcoin was the most popularly traded cryptocurrency on India's largest cryptocurrency exchange WazirX in 2021, followed by Tether, Shiba Inu and Dogecoin. The cryptocurrency exchange platform added over 200 cryptocurrencies on its exchange this year. Bitcoin maintained its lead as the most traded.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been growing rapidly in India despite restrictions from the Centre and the Reserve Bank of India. According to some estimates, over 10 crore Indians own cryptocurrencies, making India the country with the largest number of Bitcoin holders in the world. Recently Bitcoin hit $60,000 for the first time in six months, nearing its record high.

2.Tether / USDT

Tether was brought into the world out as the brainchild of individuals who felt that the cryptocurrency market was extremely unpredictable and agitating. As the premier stable coin, the Tether is fixed to the US dollar and encounters fewer vacillations contrasted with bitcoin. This alone makes the cryptocurrency the best alternative for bitcoin. Launched in 2014, tether allows users to experience the blockchain network while also encrypting their investments against major price surges and falls.

3.Shiba Inu / SHIB

Photo blogtienao

Could a crypto token named after a breed of Japanese hunting dog ride the meme train to fame? The cute memes it inspired, its whitepaper named ‘WoofPaper’ and the market interest it drew would say yes.

The first three weeks of October 2021 saw it rise by 145%. It began life with a very low exchange rate, and even after the rally, one token of SHIB costs $0.00002941. This means that ₹ 2300 could buy you over a million tokens of SHIB. That is oddly satisfying in a crypto market where buying one whole Bitcoin costs a lot more — ₹49 lakh more.

In its essence, it is a token based upon the Ethereum blockchain. In India, it shot to fame when $1 billion dollars’ worth of SHIB was donated to India’s COVID-Crypto Relief Fund in May 2021 by Ethereum founder, Vitalik Buterin.

4.Ethereum / ETH

The second most valuable cryptocurrency in the world, the Ether token is based upon the Ethereum blockchain and has become a cornerstone of the cryptocurrency world. Simply put, if today Bitcoin is gold then Ether is silver.

Ethereum introduced innovations to blockchain security and usage, with its ‘smart contracts’ becoming a platform for other applications. You need Ether or other tokens derived from it to take part in high-value trades including non-fungible tokens (NFT), decentralised finance (DeFi) and decentralised applications (DApps).

The token is also looking to become environment friendly and bring down its transaction costs — in effect an attempt to remain popular among investors and developers alike — with an upgrade to Ethereum 2.0, which is slated for sometime next year.

5.WazirX / WRX

On the WazirX crypto exchange, its namesake is the ‘utility’ token. This means users can use it as an intermediary between currency trades — wherever a direct ‘currency pair’ exchange isn’t available. It has a supply limit of one billion tokens.

WRX is used in many transactions, including rupee deposits and withdrawals, rewards and incentives, financial services beyond currency trade, and so on. For example, users would pay their exchange trading fees — with upto a 50% discount — or purchase NFTs on the WazirX Marketplace using WRX tokens.

6.Dogecoin / DOGE

What Are The Most Popular Cryptocurrencies In India - Top 10

Photo BusinessInsider

Dogecoin is the first meme cryptocurrency started with a joke that trended on the internet a long time back. After keeping a position of safety for some since its commencement in 2013, Dogecoin showed potential in 2020 when it was acknowledged as a payment model among sports teams and entered the AMC theatres. In addition, enormous names like Elon Musk and Mark Cuban prefer Dogecoin over other cryptocurrencies. A single tweet from them could make the DOGE price go berserk.

7.Tron / TRX

Tron has a goal of decentralizing entertainment; its 100 billion tokens would be used by audiences to connect with content creators directly if it is music streaming videos. Direct transactions and distributed file sharing using blockchain are likely to make less expensive content who will have to buy Tron tokens. It is one of the best cryptocurrencies in the crypto market.

8.Polygon / MATIC

Photo MT melerin

It was based on Ethereum smart contracts, MATIC tries to take us closer to a ‘cross chain’ platform. This permits the users to gain from the strengths of various blockchains and enables them to communicate with each other. This cryptocurrency is popular among investors who are hoping to add to the growth of decentralized finance such as borrowing and lending. It is one of the best cryptocurrencies to invest in 2022.

9.Cardano / ADA

Cardano is more environmentally friendly compared to other currencies that use an energy-intensive mining process. Its blockchain also supports NFTs and smart contracts for DeFi usage. Investors justify its price rise over time, by pointing to its real-world uses, such as tracking farm supply chains, fighting retail plagiarism and more.

Charles Hoksinson, the founder of Cardano and former co-founder of Ethereum, is hoping to break into the African ecosystem. He’s currently on a tour of the continent where he plans to visit a slew of countries, from South Africa to Egypt, while also meeting with startups in the blockchain space as well as regulators.

10.Solana / SOL

Photo Coin68

Solana is useful in the booming sector of decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions and is attractive amongst developers with 500 DApps built on top of its blockchain. Users of those applications, who use DeFi services and trade NFT tokens need Solana tokens, explaining its six-fold rise in value this year.

Top 10 Most Popular CryptoCurrencies in the World

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