While the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, BTC and ETHboth suffered a loss of 4% last month, some altcoins enjoyed significant upside. THE 3 best performing tokens of the month of July are, in order, MakerDAO (MKR), the native token of Ripple Labs (XRP) and finally Stellar (XRM).
MakerDAO (MKR)
MakerDAO is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) created in 2015 by Rune Chistensen and whose protocol launched in 2017 notably manages the Dai stablecoin token.
On the other hand, MKR tokens can be used to vote on changes to the MakerDAO protocol and to repay loans in the event of default.
The token won 47% in July, making it the best performing crypto of the month. The token has most certainly benefited from the implementation of the “Buyback program”. To put it simply, this program corresponds to the implementation of a new burn strategy within the protocolleading to the reduction in the number of MKRs in circulation and the increase in the price of the token.
Star of the month for July: Ripple’s XRP
XRP is a cryptocurrency that was created by the company Ripple Labs in 2012. It is the native currency of the Ripple network, which is a decentralized payment network designed to perform faster and cheaper cross-border transactions than traditional payment methods.
Ripple Labs, which was on trial against the DRY (American financial regulator), obtained a favorable verdict following deliberations in the court for the Southern District of New York. Judge Torres in effect stated that Ripple, in the case of its consumer distribution – i.e. on exchanges – was not a “investment contract” and therefore not a “security”.
The ecosystem quickly seized on the news, with investor excitement pushing the token’s price up to $0.938. Since then, the token has seen a slight correction and is currently spinning around $0.65 depending on data from CoinMarketCap.
Stellar’s XLM benefiting from the good news about Ripple
Created by the Ripple founder Jed McCaleb, the XLMin the same way that its brother XRM is a cryptocurrency designed for make fast and inexpensive cross-border payments.
In July, the token therefore benefited from the (partial) victory of Ripple against the American regulator. Moreover, the fundamentals of XLM are highly valued in the ecosystem. Christopher Newhouse, an independent crypto derivatives trader said that the Stellar network has one of the best USDC connections on the market.
The price of XLM therefore rose by 35% during the month of July.
Outlook for August
While Solana also gained 25% in July, other altcoins like Bitcoin Cash (BCH) or Litecoin (LTC) lost 20% and 18% respectively.
Knowing that August is on average worst month for traditional finance in 35 yearsthere could be a downturn for the cryptocurrency market.
But external decisions – like the verdict of the Ripple case that we experienced in July – could boost the market. We especially look forward to the SEC’s decision regarding the Bitcoin ETFs offered by BlackRock. An approval of these could act as a catalyst for the price of cryptocurrencies, reviving a month in the green for the crypto market.
Sources: Coindesk, CoinMarketCap