The total market cap of the cryptocurrency market reached a new milestone, crossing the $700 bln mark. However, the driving force that is Bitcoin has slumped to all-time lows in terms of its market dominance.
For so long Bitcoin has held more than just the lion's share of the crypto market dominance, but currently, while many will be calling it altcoin season with Bitcoin’s dominance down to 34 percent, it may be that Bitcoin has made itself less important.
At its genesis, Bitcoin was heralded as the new revolution of currency with its low fees and instant transfers, but that is long gone, and with it too perhaps Bitcoin’s relevance in the global crypto market.
Not what it was before
It all began with Bitcoin challenging the established order of money, currency, banking and finance. There was heavy adoption taking place where merchants were climbing on board to match the interest of individuals and to this end, Bitcoin was being heralded as the perfect digital currency.
However, even earlier this year when fees were pushing $2, rather than the current $20, there were rumblings about the original digital currency straying too far from its original purpose.
To this end, Bitcoin Cash was born with its believers stating that its ability to transfer almost instantly for little to no fees makes it the real Bitcoin.
Despite your feeling towards Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash, it is proof that Bitcoin, the original, was deviating from the original white paper.
SegWit2x and Digital Gold
Bitcoin had a chance to rectify all this and become a more functional currency with the implementation of SegWit2x. However, it failed to launch as the decision was made to keep Bitcoin on the path it was one, which was accumulating value in huge leaps and bounds.
Digital-marketing agency Cooperatize.com’s Co-Founder Roger Wu puts it quite simply:
“The biggest thing is, are people willing to pay in Bitcoin? The reality is that most of our customers are other businesses and other businesses don’t use Bitcoin."
Bitcoin, for so long rather undefined, took leaps towards being digital gold and as such, saw its value skyrocket as people wanted to get involved in an asset that was growing on an unprecedented level.
No longer relevant
The issue is now that Bitcoin has chosen its path, and as such, become almost stale in a continually innovating world. The path of being digital gold is also a rather basic one as every digital currency out there can hold value.
Bitcoin had mass appeal and relevance in terms of being in the mainstream; thus, if there were to be an adoption of digital currencies for payments or retail it would be Bitcoin at the top of the pile. That is no longer the case.
There are other coins out there that are both a store of value but also have other advantages.
Ripple case in point
Ripple, which is a very different type of digital currency to Bitcoin, has shot up in 2017, growing 36 times over as more and more people realize its potential as a payment system between banks.
There is innovation in Ripple that is now lacking from Bitcoin and as such the power and relevance of the original digital currency is no longer as big as it was.