As an investor, comparing cryptocurrencies is essential to making informed investment decisions. That’s why we’ve created this article to help you compare crypto giant Bitcoin and XTZ, the native Tezos token.
History
Let’s start by exploring the history of these cryptocurrencies, beginning with Bitcoin:
Bitcoin (BTC)
A developer or group created Bitcoin in 2008 during the financial crisis, during which a housing bubble occurred. Bitcoin’s developer’s identity remains hidden, despite many who have claimed to be the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakomoto.
What’s interesting is that during the first seven months after its release, Bitcoin’s developer mined 1,100,000. If kept up until today, these coins would be worth 18,836,864,000.
Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency to have experienced this kind of success. However, despite claims, it’s not the first ever released cryptocurrency. There were many other attempts at creating a decentralized currency dating back to 1990.
Tezos (XTZ)
Tezos went live in late 2018. However, the idea was thought up and proposed as far back as 2014. This was when Arthur released two papers that proposed a new blockchain. However, this was done under the pseudonym L. M Goodman.
It was created by a married couple, Kathleen and Arthur Breitman, who own the Tezos foundation.
What Are They, And Why Were They Created?
Why were Bitcoin and Tezos made in the first place? We’re going to explore this question next in the proceeding paragraphs:
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin was created as a decentralized form of currency. It was made to respond to the growing mistrust towards the central bank, and we suspect that this is part of the reason Bitcoin has seen such success.
People also see Bitcoin as the primary form of cryptocurrency. In fact, many will use the term cryptocurrency and Bitcoin interchangeably.
Tezos (XTZ)
The Tezos platform was made to be used to deploy smart contracts. Tezos is superior to Ethereum when it comes to transaction speeds and scalability. But this may change as Ethereum continues to improve.
Tezos is host to various decentralized applications. These include automated market maker Vortex and yield farming protocol Youves.
Price History
The price history of a cryptocurrency can help investors better understand the types of fluctuations they can expect.
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin’s price has varied wildly over the years since its release. This cryptocurrency was the first crypto to show us how volatile the market can be. While initially being worth next to nothing, Bitcoin found its footing.
For quite some time, you could purchase it for anything from $100-$500. However, in 2017 it saw its first significant spike rising to over $19,000. And, of course, as cryptocurrencies go, this was followed by a decline.
From here, it’d have a few minor spikes throughout 2018 and 2019, but nothing that high. At its highest, it was valued at over $12,000.
This was, at least, until the Bull Market of 2021 changed things. If you don’t already know, a bull market occurs when investor activity is at an all-time high. During 2021, Bitcoin would spike twice, both times at above $60,000.
Following this, the price of Bitcoin slowly declined to its value today at $16,842.63.
Tezos (XTZ)
Since 2018, Tezos’ price has mostly stayed the same. It used to be higher than what it is now, worth over three dollars per coin. It’d experience highs and lows up until the 2021 bull market, where the price peaked at its highest at $8.3535.
This was followed by a slow and significant plummet and small inconsistent rises leading to its price today at $0.9858.
Market Cap
The market cap of a cryptocurrency is a good indication of its overall popularity; let’s look at what this might be for Bitcoin and XTZ.
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin is ranked 1st out of the world’s cryptocurrencies, boasting a cap of $323,847,748,965.
Curiously, it also has a circulating supply of 19,227,856 Bitcoins. There are only so many Bitcoins left to be mined.
Tezos (XTZ)
Tezos currently has a cap of $906,178,389. And it boasts a circulating supply of 919,057,564 tokens.
Daily Transactions
The number of daily transactions that a cryptocurrency has is another good indication of the type of popularity it holds. Let’s take a look at the popularity of BTC and XTZ:
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin boasts a significant number of daily transactions. Currently, it has a 24-hour volume of $17,364,566,299.
Tezos (XTZ)
Tezos currently has a 24-hour volume of $13,314,275. This is significantly smaller than Bitcoin due to its lower value.
Block Size
The maximum block size of a cryptocurrency is essential. Cryptocurrency with smaller block size limits may have slower transaction-per-second rates. But the reverse is true for crypto with larger sizes. However, larger blocks may have issues such as stales.
Bitcoin (BTC)
While it originally had a smaller block size, now Bitcoin has a theoretical block size limit of 4 MB, although typically, the blocks will be around 2 MB.
Tezos (XTZ)
Unlike Bitcoin, The Tezos blockchain has no block size limit. This may facilitate faster transaction speeds.
Similarities
Do Bitcoin and Tezos have any similarities? Well, their primary similarity lies in that they’re both tradable decentralized currencies. But otherwise, they’re fundamentally different in many ways. We’ll explore this in the next section.
Differences
Bitcoin uses a proof-of-work consensus mechanism. While this lets Bitcoin transactions be confirmed without a central authority, it takes longer than the proof-of-stake mechanism. XTZ uses this mechanism to process transactions and make new blocks on the blockchain.
Bitcoin and XTZ also have different purposes. Bitcoin fits into the original purpose of cryptocurrency: simply acting as a way for people to send money online. XTZ takes a different route, however. It’s only used to operate and maintain the Tezos network.
Risks
What are the risks of investing in BTC and Tezos? For one, both Tezos and Bitcoin are subject to volatility and unpredictable investor behavior. But what else should you look out for? Let’s explore this further:
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin has the highest risk of being subject to governmental regulation. Most crypto community members are aware of China’s complete ban on all cryptocurrency transactions. If this is any indication of the road ahead, Bitcoin is certainly at risk.
Bitcoin is also risky because it’s subject to the whims of a few investors. Let’s explain: a large portion of the available Bitcoin today is owned by just a tiny minority of miners and/or investors. This means that they can influence the value significantly – not necessarily in a positive way.
Tezos (XTZ)
Overall, XTZ is a relatively stable investment that Tezos users can rely on for the long term. But – remember that cryptocurrency should always be part of a balanced portfolio of investments.
The main risk with XTZ is that it has many competitors. The Tezos blockchain serves as a platform for deploying smart contracts. This is just like leading competitors, such as Ethereum.
Where to Buy
So, where can you buy cryptocurrency? We’ll look at this question in a bit more detail next.
Bitcoin (BTC)
You can buy Bitcoin on numerous crypto exchanges, including Robinhood and Coinbase. However, you can also purchase it on financial applications such as Venmo and PayPal.
Bitcoin has become incredibly easy to purchase, so much so that it’s available at physical cryptocurrency ATMs around the US. You may even have luck purchasing Bitcoin at a traditional broker, as many have begun trading in Bitcoin.
Tezos (XTZ)
XTZ is available on cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance, Coinmama, and Coinbase.
Exchanging Bitcoin (BTC) for Tezos (XTZ)
You can exchange your BTC for XTZ on exchanges such as LetsExchange. You’ll need to select the coins you wish to exchange. Next, you’ll have to put in your wallet address, followed by finally sending the deposit.
Future Plans
What does the future look like for BTC and XTZ? Some people have positive projections about cryptocurrencies in general. Many, however, are skeptical about their real-world value. Let’s explore this in a bit more detail in the following paragraphs:
Bitcoin (BTC)
Bitcoin’s future is currently quite bright. Unless a regulation has a seriously negative effect on its outlook, we expect that it’ll become integrated more and more into society as more companies accept it as a form of payment.
As we speak, Microsoft, Whole Foods, PayPal, and even Home Depot accept cryptocurrency. There are also many others, and we expect that list to grow.
Further, it’s also interesting to consider what might occur once the Bitcoin supply is finished. After all, it’s capped at just 21 million. For one, BTC’s purchasing power and value will adjust according to the lack of supply. It may become an even more attractive investment.
We’ve also seen that this realization is likely influencing the price predictions of crypto experts. Some anticipate a spike of over $180,000 by mid-2032, and it’s also expected to hold a trading value of about $75,000 between 2033 and 2035.
Tezos (XTZ)
The future of XTZ, aside from concerns of being regulated and the concern for competitors, is relatively positive. Price predictions for 2030 are significantly higher than its current value at just under a dollar.
By 2030, XTZ could be valued at $22.21 per coin and its highest, $25.38.
Sources:
https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/bitcoin/historical-data/
https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/tezos/
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