Top Cryptocurrencies That Lead Charts During the Summer Bull Run

Are we all in the altcoin season? Is it that time to pick potentially high-performance coins besides Bitcoin? 

The fact is folks can be so infatuated with the “digital gold” to even forget that there are over 12k coins to pick from–as per CoinMarketCap (CMC). 

Spoilt for an “Altcoin” Choice?

This can, understandably and frustratingly, be overwhelming. You can get confused, even entangled with the labyrinth that comes with crypto research—especially if done manually—another reason compounding fury–and disenchantment stemming from missed opportunities. 

Even so, amid the yo-yoing of Bitcoin and Ethereum prices, there are coins that have been rocketing, defying gravity, and seeking to find Elon Musk somewhere on the moon. 

MATIC—now Polygon—rings a bell? What about Solana (SOL)? There were many to pick from. 

Unfortunately, there weren’t out there “screaming” buy me. Those who got in earlier and are now swimming in crypto cash are ardent followers—project believers. There are those who got in luckily based on technical analysis, others from recommendations, and others from just pure old luck.

Top Performing Altcoins from DeFi, Layer-1, Layer-2, and NFTs

Regardless of the technique, the end justifies the means, and their lives have been changed—perhaps forever. 

From their exemplary price action and perpendicular explosion in the weekly or daily time frames, there is a trend. 

Indeed, the rise of DeFi saw DeFi tokens gains—and this is understandable with even more history from early 2020 coinciding with the expansion of DeFi TVL. 

Right about the same time, the need for lower Gas fees in Ethereum saw EVM-compatible and DeFi-tuned layer-1s with comparatively higher throughput and therefore low fees rally—Polygon, Solana, BSC, anyone? 

Additionally, there was a surge in Layer-2 tokens like Loopring (LRC) and others. 

But what’s interesting is the rise of yet another exciting smart-contracts-powered innovation—NFTs. 

The field is still relatively new (nine months now?) but is super promising—talks of its influence in eCommerce, revolutionizing art—and so much more. 

Unfortunately, OpenSea is the main marketplace in Ethereum and there are no tokens to boast of. 

However, RARI, popular NFTs games like Axie Infinity, LAND, SAND, and mostly metaverse tokens got a real boost in valuation, tapping from the rally. Yes, CryptoPunks tokens don’t count.

Now, here’s the thing with trading—history tends to be replicated, not in the exact format but with some similarities. 

The surge of prices from late July through to August, or the rally from late December 2020 through to May 2021, or the dump of May 2021 and mid-August 2021 won’t be the last. 

Crypto prices aren’t spared from market cycles and this presents an opportunity for the discerning investor and trader. 

Crypto is Cyclic and the Daring are Rewarded

The question is: What happens next? Time to fine-tune strategy or recalibrate a crypto portfolio? Perhaps, just maybe.

What’s apparent is that, in the years to come, traders can expect another 75X, 200X, and other surges to print out in the future. 

For example, if DOGE did a 250X, there could be a chance to grab these tokens at spot rates considering the dump. 

If DeFi and Layer-2 are the future; what about doubling down on Loopring coins or DyDx Exchange, or UNI tokens? 

Again, if NFTs in the future, what about ImmutableX Layer-2 for NFTs tokens or even RARI?

To better position ourselves for potential future opportunities, we have broken down, distilling some of the top crypto projects that performed exemplary well in July to August and are convinced could further post even more tremendous results in the months ahead.

Top Crypto Projects to Closely Track

There are three categories four categories for our explorations: DeFi, Layer-2s, NFTs, and Layer-1.

Axie Infinity (AXS)—840X

The future of gaming is NFTs and blockchain.

Axie Infinity is a game representative of what the future holds—gamer incentives, transparency, and high reliability from a public ledger. The AXS token gained a massive 840X from late November 2020 – and bulls are showing no hints of slowing down.

If the past guides and NFTs continue to find adoption, Axie Infinity—a video game on Ethereum—would continue registering even more success. All the checkboxes have been ticked—adoption, digital existence, and incentivizing tokens.

Gaming is a multi-billion industry that’s awakening after the slumber which saw middlemen take over. AXS is just one of the many games ambitious. However, AXS has the early lead in user count and adoption—precisely what a trader wants and would ride on.

Fantom (FTM)—840X

The layer-1 smart contracting platform has a unique consensus algorithm, leveraging a DAG, and plans to be a leader of DeFi. 

Their laser-focus on decentralized finance saw them activate an incentivizing program distributing 370 million FTM to developers in a bid to carve out market share. 

Flashing with their announcement was an upswing in prices—which is still ongoing. 

At peaks in September, FTM price had rallied 840X from March 2020 to be one of the top-performing assets. 

Therefore, as long as the incentivizing program exists, FTM prices might defy gravity, rewarding traders who scoop up the asset on pullbacks.

Dogecoin (DOGE) —440X

The project is one of the oldest with several consensus algorithms. 

At peaks, holders believed the coin could run to $1—until when Elon Musk marked the climactic rally appearing at the SNL as the DogeFather. 

Then DOGE peaked at $0.74 in early May before correction at spot levels. 

At that time, DOGE had rallied 440X from April 2020.

The project can be an alternative to Bitcoin, serving as a medium of exchange and is therefore closely watched. 

After Elon Musk’s endorsement, DOGE now has more utility with swelling daily trading volumes. 

As such, DOGE might be undervalued at spot rates—a reason for traders to potentially find entries expecting another wave higher to $0.74.

Solana (SOL)—182X

Solana is a Layer-1 blockchain differentiated with high throughput and their focus of being a DeFi playground. 

While Ethereum hemorrhaged users, Solana kept receiving defectors as they offered better scaling, lower fees, and more incentives. 

From late 2020 to early September 2021, SOL defied expectations to print a 182X rally and new all-time highs above $200. 

Interestingly, even amid the contraction of September 2021, losses were tamed and prices stable above $100—which is quite a feat for the emerging but popular smart contracting project. 

For what Solana developers promise, there could be more room for growth as DeFi and NFT ecosystems spring up in Solana, boosting demand for SOL.

Polygon (MATIC)—140X

Another beneficiary of Ethereum’s misery is Polygon—previously MATIC. What was holders’ ROI when MATIC prices peaked in late May?—a cool 140X from March 2020.

Indeed, these are performances worthy of a standing ovation. 

Polygon used Ethereum as a ladder to the big leagues and is one of the most popular and worthwhile projects with an active community. 

Polygon is an EVM sidechain for scaling Ethereum—translating to interoperability and low fees. 

In fact, Polygon handles far more transactions than Ethereum gifting the project more rap—a drawer for investors/traders who sense value.

The cool-off from late September, therefore, could offer entries for traders keen on tapping the future of blockchain interoperability.

Cardano (ADA)—114X

Charles Hoskinson has been accused of marketing a project that’s under development. 

It recently activated smart contracts, marking its forays in DeFi and NFTs. 

However, Cardano is still actively being refined with two more phases to go. 

ADA believers are firm in their stance, believing the coin may well surge to new all-time highs above $3. 

Cardano prices might have briefly shrunk but there are far more upsides in the weeks and months ahead. 

From Q1 2020, ADA prices sprung to 114X, peaking in August 2021. As September closes bearish and ADA cooling off, will there be more entries in the future for calculating ADA traders angling for another upswing?

Avalanche (AVAX) —73X

The platform is focused on DeFi and is one of the most active, promising projects backed by heavyweights like Emin Gün Sirer. 

The development team, Ava Labs, is ambitious and to show their intention of being market leader, they announced a $180 million incentive scheme—a liquidity mining program dubbed Avalanche Rush– in partnership with two other DeFi protocols—Aave and Curve in August 2021. 

This fueled the rally, sparking a wave of higher highs which saw AVAX register new all-time highs in July 2021 for a 73X surge.

Ethereum (ETH) —52X

There is no doubt that Ethereum is super-potent and utility—satisfying doubters who might dismiss the project from a regulatory, investment contracts point of view. 

Thing is, Ethereum is the leader of smart contracting and its currency (fuel) has rallied 52X from 2018 lows and 11X in H2 2021 to May 2021 peaks. This is quite impressive considering the level of ETH’s liquidity. 

Fundamentally, ETH is on the path of being crowned the king of smart contracting, the home of DeFi, and the NFT launchpad. Moreover, ETH is a deflationary token and over months, as it prepares to shift to Eth2, it may as well be the ultra-sound money, better than gold and BTC.

Time to load up?

Loopring (LRC)—48X

Loopring is the first platform allowing for DEXes to use layer-2 on Ethereum. 

Immediately after the activation of Layer-2 in late 2020, the LRC price began its climb. 

By Q1 2021, it peaked, surging 48X as a result. Since then prices have contracted. 

However, Loopring prices now have support with the increasing popularity of Layer-2 trading and sprouting up of more layer-2 exchanges and providers like Arbitrum, StarkEx, Optimism, and many more. 

Therefore, if token trading and DEXes belong to Layer-2, Loopring being one of the first using ZK-rollups would rise with the tide, an opportunity for value traders.

Looking Forward

Crypto is dense with opportunities—some of which are obviously requiring one to set up a trading account and load up. 

The above list highlights some of the top performers across the board. There are far more opportunities, say in blockchain startups in seed stages or those doing public rounds. 

However, established projects with considerable market share in DeFi, NFTs, smart contracting, or Layer-2 offer better for traders seeking to quickly enter and exit.

 In a cyclic market, contractions may provide entries for the discerning trader confident of a resurgence in price based on technical and fundamental technical analysis.