41 Cryptocurrency Statistics [All You Need To Know In 2020]

Bitcoin was the first decentralized cryptocurrency. It was created in 2009. Since then, it has experienced massive growth. The amount of success that Bitcoin has achieved exposes the flaws in our traditional banking system. It has also brought about thousands of other cryptocurrencies known as “alt-coins.” 

Several businesses around the world now accept various forms of cryptocurrency as a means of payment for goods and services. 

In light of cryptocurrencies’ popularity, we have decided to bring you some of the most crucial cryptocurrency statistics to sate your knowledge thirst.

Fascinating Cryptocurrency Statistics

Listed below are some of the mind-blowing cryptocurrency stats. Let’s have a look.

• As of May, 2020, the cryptocurrency market cap is $265.545 billion.
• The global blockchain market will go up to $23.3 billion by 2023.
• Bitcoin alone accounts for $6 billion of daily online transactions.
• Between 2012 and 2020, Bitcoin has gained 193,639.36%
• The cryptocurrency market is predicted to grow with a CAGR of 56.4% from 2019 to 2025.
• Globally, cryptocurrency users have exceeded 40 million.
• Turkey is the country with the highest rate of cryptocurrency adoption (20%).

The figures mentioned above are jawbreaking, considering the relatively short time that cryptocurrencies have been in existence. We believe this should give a hint as to why the world is clamoring for increased adoption of cryptocurrencies. 

General Cryptocurrency Statistics

Let’s talk about Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, blockchain, and the different milestones attained thus far.

1. A post on Bitcoin surfaces on social media every three seconds.

(Source: Finder)

A recent cryptocurrency stat revealed that there are 28,866 social media posts on Bitcoin posted online daily. If we do the math, then about 1,203 posts are made every hour. That is about 20 posts per minute!

2. Between 2012 and May, 2020, Bitcoin has gained 193,639.36%.

(Source: Coin.Dance)

According to cryptocurrency growth statistics, Bitcoin has outperformed numerous commodities such as gold. Currently, the price of gold is at $1,723.76 per ounce, whereas that of Bitcoin is hovering around $9,648.22.

3. Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency.

(Source: Coin Casso)

Bitcoin occupies 68.7% of the whole cryptocurrency market. That equals about $117 billion. Also, cryptocurrency statistics for 2020 show that its market cap is higher than that of all other cryptocurrencies combined.

4. The cryptocurrency with the highest growth rate in 2017 is Ripple (XRP).

(Source: Finder)

In 2017, Bitcoin experienced its highest growth rate to reach its peak worth of $19,783. However, global cryptocurrency statistics have it that in the same year, another cryptocurrency was also reaching its landmark, surpassing Bitcoin in growth percentage. Bitcoin in 2017 experienced a 1,318% growth percentage, whereas that of XRipple was pegged at 36,018%.

5. Nearly 980 million malware are already in existence around the world.

(Source: Data Prot)

Malware is a piece of code used to gain unauthorized access to a computer system. It makes cryptojacking possible, and can also be used to steal sensitive information from your computer, like your Bitcoin wallet private key. That said, you might want to consider getting an antivirus solution to keep your information safe. 

6. The first ten cryptocurrencies with the highest market cap make up about 88% of the total cryptocurrency market value.

(Source: Block Social)

This includes Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Tether, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, Litecoin, Binance Coin, EOS, and Tezos. 

7. Cryptocurrency exchanges around the globe have exceeded 300 as of 2020.

(Source: Block Social)

Exchanges serve as middlemen between buyers and sellers of cryptocurrencies. According to cryptocurrency facts, their services support fiat-for-cryptocurrency transactions and crypto-to-crypto transactions.

8. The number of Bitcoin ATMs around the world stands at 7,722.

(Source: Statista)

Bitcoin ATMs are on the rise due to the ease they provide to users looking to buy, sell, or exchange Bitcoin. The United States is home to the highest number of Bitcoin ATMs (5780 locations or sites), followed by Canada (775 sites), and the UK (292 sites). Countries like Nigeria, New Zealand, Mongolia, India, and a few others have just one Bitcoin ATM each, according to cryptocurrency stats for 2020.

9. 1,799 tokens have made sales since mid-2016.

(Source: Block Social)

Token sales, also known as ICO is known to have started in 2013 with MasterCoin. Also, Ethereum was able to raise a large sum of Bitcoin (up to 3,700 Bitcoins worth 2.3 million USD) from an ICO in 2014. However, statistics on cryptocurrency growth tell us that the business of ICOs did not really kick off until 2016 when various other token sales raised billions of dollars.

10. 1,800 new Bitcoins are added to the market daily. 

(Source: Buy Bitcoin Worldwide)

This number could even experience a decline due to the recent Bitcoin halving. It resulted in a reduction of the Bitcoin rewards for each verified block by half.

11. Ethereum had its highest run in value when it hit $1,417 per Ether in January 2018.

(Source: CNBC)

In 2017, Ethereum grew by more than 13,000 of its initial value, amassing a staggering 1.2 million transactions. Currently, Ethereum has settled around $200 per unit.

12. Over 18.3 million Bitcoins have been mined and are in existence as of Q1 2020.

(Source: Statista)

That leaves about 2.7 million Bitcoins left to be mined, as the total Bitcoin cap is just 21 million. However, from calculations drawn from crypto stats, it will take over a hundred years before the last Bitcoin is mined.

13. The new alt-coin “Libra coin” from Facebook is expected to validate up to 1,000 transactions every second.

(Source: Coin Telegraph)

Bitcoin, which happens to be the darling of all cryptocurrencies, only processes about 12 transactions per second (though it was designed to handle just seven). In contrast, the new Libra coin could process up to a thousand transactions per second. This means that transactions using the Libra coin will be processed way faster than those of Bitcoin. This may prove to become a turning point for the world of cryptocurrency.

14. The first Bitcoin real-life purchase was for two pizzas, and it cost 10,000 BTC.

(Source: Investopedia)

According to cryptocurrency usage statistics, this happened on May 22, 2010, between two Bitcoin forum members. Judging by the current price, this amount of Bitcoin is equivalent to over 90 million USD.

15. Bitcoin alone accounts for $6 billion of daily online transactions.

(Source: News Logical)

It is surpassed only by two of America’s top payment networks – Visa Card ($30.3 billion) and MasterCard ($16.2 billion).

16. There are 5,098 alternative cryptocurrencies in existence today aside from Bitcoin.

(Source: News.Bitcoin)

Bitcoin paved the way for cryptocurrency, and now thousands of other cryptocurrencies have flooded the marketplace. Cryptos like Ethereum have their unique blockchain, and others like Libra were created to exploit the flaws the Bitcoin had (such as the low number of transactions that can be carried out per second).

Cryptocurrency Adoption Statistics

According to cryptocurrency user statistics, new users are being added to the cryptocurrency network each day. Also, the number of cryptocurrency transactions that take place daily is on the rise. We have taken the time to fish out some of the top cryptocurrency users statistics for 2020. Let’s have a look at them:

17. As of Q4 2019, global Blockchain wallet users stood at 44.69 million.

(Source: Statista)

As of the fourth quarter of 2019, there were already more than 40 million users. This is a significant increase when compared to the 10.98 million recorded in the last quarter of 2016.

18. 77% of the global finance sector could adopt blockchain technology by 2020.

(Source: Your Tech Diet)

According to cryptocurrency statistics, the finance sector has been one of the primary beneficiaries and investors in the blockchain. This draws from the fact that the blockchain technology bears many features that will transform the finance sector for the better. They include improved security, increased transaction speed, transparency, efficient auditing, and low cost of operation. Moreover, blockchain technology can reduce 30% of banks’ infrastructure costs.

19. 75% of the IoT industry could adopt blockchain technology by the end of 2020.

(Source: Your Tech Diet)

The combination of blockchain technology and the IoT in recent times is tagged as revolutionary by experts. Just being able to transfer multiple information from any location and having the blockchain verifying the legitimacy of such information is mind-blowing. According to cryptocurrency facts, the marriage of blockchain and the IoT can bring about accelerated data exchange, improved security of files, low cost of operation, and improved accuracy.

20. Adopting blockchain technology can save financial organizations up to $12 billion yearly.

(Source: Forbes)

Running a financial organization is expensive, mainly because of outdated systems and processes. The financial sector has resisted several attempts for a change. This has resulted in the loss of tons of money to theft, extra charges from third parties, and increased costs of operation. However, with the introduction of blockchain technology, all of that can be reduced to the nearest minimum, if not eliminated completely.

21. Bitcoin is responsible for an average of about 350,000 daily transactions on the blockchain.

(Source: Born2Invest)

According to crypto statistics, in 2017, Bitcoin’s day-to-day operations on the blockchain was at an all-time high of 490,644 transactions per day. This figure has since reduced to about 350,000 following a crash in Bitcoin price in 2018. However, the recent coronavirus pandemic has caused a further decline in this figure to about 250,000.

22. Coinbase exchange has over 30 million cryptocurrency users.

(Source: Block Social)

Coinbase is one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world that allows you to buy, sell, and even store some of the most popular cryptocurrencies in the market. Based in the US, the company was founded in June 2012 and has amassed over $150 billion worth of transactions ever since. In 2017, Coinbase had a user base of just 13.3 million people. However, the current number is more than double.

Cryptocurrency Statistics by Country

According to cryptocurrency statistics by country, certain countries have placed strict regulations on incoming, outgoing, and internal cryptocurrency transactions. The purpose is to prevent the use of cryptocurrencies for fraud or for stealing public funds. However, some other countries like Turkey are more lenient and even encourage activities like cryptocurrency mining and trading.

23. 79% of cryptocurrency owners in the UK have invested in Bitcoin.

(Source: Finder)

Bitcoin serves as the base currency for other cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency adoption statistics show that it can be used to purchase any other cryptocurrency on exchanges.

24. China is likely to become the first country that will launch a blockchain-powered central bank digital currency (CBDC).

(Source: Block Social)

China’s very own digital currency could launch by mid-2020, with the country already boasting of one of the highest online payment traffic. Other countries like Dubai (Emcash), Venezuela (Petrol), Estonia (Estcoin), Russia (CryptoRuble), Sweden (E-Krona), and Japan (J-coin) could launch their personal cryptocurrency shortly.

25. The US federal government spending on blockchain is predicted to reach $123.5 million by 2022.

(Source: Next Gov)

According to blockchain statistics, this is a significant increase from $10.7 million spent in 2017. The US government and other private organizations have announced imminent plans to embark on a series of blockchain implementations into various parts of the economy and work infrastructure.

26. The US has the highest number of token sales ever (48%).

(Source: Block Social)

Following the surge of Bitcoin price in 2017, thousands of new cryptocurrencies were created. ICOs (also known as token sales) were used to raise capital for each new cryptocurrency. Statistics on cryptocurrency volume by country reveal that 48% of all token sales have come from the US, 12.78% from Singapore, and another 10.5% from the UK. In 2017 alone, token sales raised $5.6 billion, most of which were fraud schemes.

27. Turkey is the country with the highest rate of cryptocurrency adoption.

(Source: Coin Telegraph)

Turkey has a depleting economy and is currently in a trade war with the US. This has massively affected Turkey and the value of its currency in the market. Many in Turkey see cryptocurrency as a way out of the recent economic downfall and are investing heavily in it. Statistics on cryptocurrency adoption rate show that 20% of Turkey’s population now has an idea of what cryptocurrency is all about – the highest amongst all countries.

28. Bitcoin miners in China account for 66% of the global hash rate.

(Source: Coin Telegraph)

The hash rate is a metric that indicates the total computing power required to verify blocks on the Bitcoin blockchain. Although China has strict laws regarding cryptocurrency usage in its country, the luxury of cheap electricity and advanced technology makes it the ideal place for cryptocurrency mining. This explains why the biggest mining companies are situated in China.

Cryptocurrency Market Statistics

In the world of cryptocurrency, time is an essential factor as things can change rapidly due to the high volatility of the market. Check out the stats below to understand how the cryptocurrency market operates.

29. In February 2018, the cryptocurrency market went down by $100 billion within 24 hours.

(Source: Finder)

According to cryptocurrency market statistics, the surge in the price of several cryptocurrencies in 2017 caused governments to place strict regulations on cryptocurrency usage and transactions. This resulted in a panic amongst users causing them to withdraw their investments.

30. The global blockchain market is predicted to rise to $23.3 billion by 2023.

(Source: PR News Wire)

In 2018, statistics on the cryptocurrency market size revealed that the blockchain market was worth just $1.2 billion. In 2019, that figure rose to $2.2 billion. Its year-on-year growth is expected to keep increasing.

31. The world is predicted to spend up to 15.9 billion in blockchain-related tech by 2023.

(Source: Statista)

Global spending on blockchain-related tech was $1.5 billion in 2018. It’s predicted to grow even further as more industries look to integrate blockchain features into their infrastructure.

32. In 2020, tokens have raised only $20 million in sales.

(Source: Block Social)

Compared to the billions generated in ICO sales in 2017 alone, that is a long way down. 

What went wrong? 

According to reports, most tokens have proven to be a scam over time and not worthy of investment.  Cryptocurrency transaction statistics reveal that 80% of ICOs released in 2017 were scams to either defraud people or raise funds for more important cryptocurrency projects.

33. As of May 17, 2020, the cryptocurrency market cap is $265.545 billion.

(Source: Coin Market Cap)

According to cryptocurrency volume statistics, Bitcoin remains the highest shareholder of the cryptocurrency market, followed by Ethereum. However, there are also thousands of other cryptocurrencies that contribute their quota to the growth of thе market.

34. The cryptocurrency market is predicted to grow with a CAGR of 56.4% from 2019 to 2025.

(Source: PR News Wire)

Although not as significant as the CAGR rate recorded in 2017, the price of Bitcoin has increased from $3,816.08 recorded at the end of 2018 to $9,472.73 in Q1 of 2020.

35. Cryptocurrency startups have raised over $20 billion via ICOs since 2017.

(Source: Coin Telegraph)

Between 2017 and 2018, ICOs raised over $18 billion in sales. When added to the $2 billion raised in 2016, we already have over $20 billion. Although the ICO trend has reduced drastically between 2019 and 2020, millions of dollars have also been generated as token sales within this time frame.

Cryptocurrency Mining Statistics

Mining is an essential process in the world of cryptocurrencies. It uses the blockchain network and is the only way new cryptos are added to the market. 

So, how does the cryptocurrency mining process work?

Let’s see:

36. Bitcoin mining alone requires about 77.78 TWh of electricity per year.

(Source: Lykke)

Cryptocurrency mining consumes a lot of electricity, and Bitcoin is no exception. Cryptocurrency power consumption stats show that the difficulty involved in mining Bitcoin has increased from less than one trillion in 2017 to 16.10 trillion in 2020. This means that miners will require 16X the energy needed to mine one Bitcoin block in 2017 to mine the same block in 2020.

37. The Bitcoin reward for miners halves for every 210,000 verified blocks added to the blockchain.

(Source: Investopedia)

When Bitcoin was launched in 2009, the reward for miners was pegged at 50 BTC. Cryptocurrency mining statistics show that the most recent Bitcoin halving took place on May 11, 2020. But before that, there had already been two other bitcoin halvings – one in 2012 (reducing the reward to 25 BTC), and the other in 2016 (reducing the reward to 12.5 BTC). The most recent bitcoin halving slashed this reward to 6.25 BTC.

38. There is a reward of 2 Ether for every verified block that is added to the Ethereum blockchain.

(Source: Consen Sys)

Initially, the reward was 5 Ether for every block mined. However, the Byzantium hard fork in late 2017 adjusted the prize to 3 Ether. This was followed by the Constantinople hard fork in early 2019, which subsequently reduced the reward from 3 to 2 Ether.

39. It takes an average of 10 minutes to verify a Bitcoin transaction.

(Source: Coin Central)

10 minutes is the time it takes to verify every transaction in a block before it is sent to the node and added to the blockchain. This means that every 10 minutes, 6.25 Bitcoins are released and added to the market.

Cryptocurrency Security Statistics

Cryptocurrency has experienced massive growth. However, it also comes with its security challenges. According to cryptocurrency security statistics, there have been hundreds of cybercrimes involving cryptocurrencies, both in the past and in the present. Today, every exchange and every cryptocurrency wallet is a target for cybercriminals. 

40. 4.32% of the total Monero cryptocurrency in circulation comes from cryptojacking.

(Source: Coin Desk)

When cryptojacking was fairly new, most of its resources were used to mine Monero. This stems from its relative ease of mining and the ability to carry out untraceable transactions when compared to Bitcoin. If we go by the current value of Monero, then about $64 million worth of Monero have been lost to theft.

41. With the aid of malware, $1.1 billion worth of cryptocurrency was stolen within the first half of 2018.

(Source: CNBC)

There are millions of malware in existence, and many of them are sold for as low as $1.04 on the dark web. Cryptocurrency theft statistics show that any of these can be successfully used to hack an unprotected system.

Top 10 Cryptocurrency by Market Cap

Coin Market Cap lists all cryptocurrencies by market capitalization in descending order. Listed below are the top 10 cryptocurrencies according to their respective market cap.

1. Bitcoin.

Market cap – $177.153 billion.

Market share – 68.23%.

To think that the market cap of Bitcoin was just $1.02 billion in 2013 shows how fast Bitcoin has risen in value.

2. Ethereum.

Market cap – $22.255 billion.

Market share – 8.77%.

Ethereum remains the most valuable cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. This stems from its broad user base and unique source code that allows users to create decentralized applications and smart contracts that run on blockchain technology.

3. XRipple.

Market cap – $8.829 billion.

Market share – 3.48%.

XRipple as a cryptocurrency was created to speed up financial transactions across borders. To achieve this, the mining process was eliminated. Also, all XRipple transactions are validated by just 25 nodes that act as a group of companies and investors of Bitcoin. Another amazing feature of the cryptocurrency, as revealed by crypto statistics, is that up to 1,500 transactions can be processed per second.

4. Tether.

Market cap – $8.805 billion.

Market share of 3.47%.

Tether was created to tackle the volatility of top cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. It serves as a medium of exchange between fiat and cryptocurrencies. In other words, its value in the market is tied to that of the US dollars. Top exchanges around the world are already accepting Tether as a form of dollar replacement. 

5. Bitcoin Cash.

Market cap – $4.381 billion.

Market share – 1.73%.

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is a fork of Bitcoin and has a faster transaction time than Bitcoin. Its block is larger and can carry out more transactions per second compared to Bitcoin. Transaction fees using BCH is also lower compared to Bitcoin.

6. Bitcoin SV.

Market cap – $3.47 billion.

Market share – 1.37%.

Bitcoin Satoshi Vision is a fork of BCH and the goal of its owners is to bring back a cryptocurrency that is as close to the original vision of Bitcoin conceived by Satoshi Nakamoto. According to cryptocurrency growth statistics, it has since gone on to become one of the most valuable cryptocurrencies in the market.

7. Litecoin.

Market cap – $2.808 billion.

Market share – 1.11%.

Litecoin was created to function as a means of online payment like PayPal, Payoneer, etc. Users can make use of the Litecoin PayPal gateway to transfer funds across borders just like PayPal. So far, about five debit card providers have integrated Litecoin as means of payment into their services. 

8. Binance Coin. 

Market cap – $2.511 billion.

Market share – 0.99%.

Binance Coin was created by the owners of the Binance exchange, one of the biggest exchanges in the world. The coin allows users to pay for services on the binance platform. 

9. EOS.

Market cap – $2.437 billion.

Market share – 0.87%.

According to cryptocurrency facts, the EOS system was created to function as a platform where users can both develop and host decentralized applications on a commercial scale like the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The EOS token is what users need to run various services on the EOS network

10. Tezos.

Market cap – $1.804 billion.

Market share – 0.70%.

Tezos is a system that functions with blockchain technology just like many other cryptos. The only distinguishing factor about Tezos is that it gives its users the power to propose changes to the system. If a user’s proposed change is approved by stakeholders, that user gets a reward.

Wrap Up

The world of cryptocurrency is vast and ever changing. 

Cryptocurrency statistics show that the crypto market is expected to grow even further once there is mass adoption and more lenient regulations from government bodies. Who knows what surprises we’re about to witness.

Is your business harnessing the powers of the cryptocurrency market already?