How does one asset dethrone another from the top spot and take their place? There is no simple answer because the first place can take many forms. The most common of which (especially when it comes to stocks) is market capitalization. But there are also other quantifiers.

For example, in the cryptocurrency market, many cryptocurrencies have left the top dog Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) in the dust when it comes to trading. But when it comes to market capitalization, only Ethereal has any realistic chance of outperforming Bitcoin. It might even be a bit more famous and well-known compared to cryptocurrencies, thanks to its secondary markets and investment assets that it is associated with (such as NFTs).

For other cryptocurrencies, such as Vibe (CRYPTO:XRP)becoming the next Bitcoin would be challenging, to say the least.

bitcoin vs ripple

bitcoin and ripple they have several differences. Bitcoin is the cryptocurrency with its own blockchain, while Ripple was created as a payment settlement system. This alone makes it a serious competitor to Bitcoin, as it is more likely to be adopted by existing banking/financial systems than Bitcoin (which is still primarily coveted as an investment asset).

However, Ripple fails as a real cryptocurrency. When it comes to paying for goods and services through crypto, Bitcoin has a much better chance of being accepted than Ripple.

The fundamental technological difference between the two is that where Bitcoin follows a proof-of-work system to validate the transaction, Ripple uses a consensus protocol.

The next Bitcoin?

Despite the differences, many of which are in favor of Ripple, its chances of becoming the next Bitcoin are quite low for a number of reasons. It is currently the seventh largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, and Bitcoin is about 23 times larger than Ripple. Therefore, the smaller crypto is hardly on its way to displacing Bitcoin from the top spot. It may not even be possible if the price of Bitcoin hits four digits instead of the current five.

The same goes for the price tag. At its peak, Ripple could not even cross $4 per unit, while Bitcoin reached over $67,500.

The area where Ripple could be considered a more promising crypto investment compared to Bitcoin is its growth potential. Even if we just use re-reaching the previous peak as a comparison benchmark, Ripple far outperforms bitcoin. The largest crypto is trading 43% off at its peak.

Ripple, however, can grow its investment capital by 2.5 times just by reaching its 2021 peak and roughly five times growth if it reaches its all-time peak in 2017. Bitcoin will have to exceed various expectations and ceilings to reach that mark.

silly takeaway

If you are not intimately familiar with the intricacies of crypto invest and different cryptocurrencies, you will naturally learn more about Bitcoin, the most well-known cryptocurrency that everyone from retail to institutional investors is investing in. But of the two, Ripple might be a slightly better buy, even if it may never become the next Bitcoin.