The Most Used Cryptocurrencies in South Africa

South Africa is one of the leading nations for cryptocurrency ownership in the world and continues to remain a major adopter of crypto and blockchain technology for everyday use. Figures shown in a 2019 report from 'We Are Social's - Global Digital Yearbook' show that 10.7% of internet users in South Africa own a form of cryptocurrency of some kind. This is a leading amount compared to the remaining worldwide average of 5.5% of internet users.

This pace of adoption shows just how popular cryptocurrency continues to be in South Africa. Let's look at some of the most popular options for cryptocurrencies available in South Africa for 2019:

Bitcoin

Bitcoin remains the most traded and popular cryptocurrency worldwide, it also remains the highest valued crypto coin on the market. In South Africa, it remains the most owned cryptocurrency coin with some traders buying it for either investment or personal purposes. It reached its 10th-anniversary last year and there is still much speculation about whether the price will continue to rise past its peak price of $20,000 in December 2017 after a particularly volatile year in 2018.

Yet the fact that Bitcoin is considered to be the best cryptocurrency trading option. The fact that it's also possible for South African traders to also directly buy Bitcoin in ZAR instead of USD continues to make it a popular cryptocurrency choice in South Africa.

Ethereum

In terms of market capitalisation, Ethereum's Ether coin remains the 2nd most popular cryptocurrency globally. Although Bitcoin is the most valuable coin currently and is the best coin to store value on compared to Ethereum. Ether is generally a better coin for transactions. This is because Ethereum has faster transactions than Bitcoin as well as lower transaction fees which makes it more attractive for exchanges.

For South African traders Ethereum is a cryptocurrency to watch, especially as its blockchain technology has attracted a lot of investment from over 150 major companies such as MasterCard and Deloitte who are interested in using the blockchain technology. This investment and adoption is likely to affect the Ethereum value. Again it is also possible for South African traders to purchase Ether directly with ZAR.

Litecoin

Litecoin was launched back in 2011, with its founder aiming to create a 'lighter form' of Bitcoin. This means that Litecoin can complete a transaction in roughly 2.5 minutes, which is much faster than Bitcoin's 10 minutes. This makes it a good choice for traders looking to complete fast transactions. Globally it's the 6th most traded cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalisation.

For South African traders it remains potentially a good investment coin due to the fact that it has a fairly low market cap. Coins with a fairly low market cap are considered good for investment as they have a reasonably high potential for coin value growth in the market.

EOS

EOS is becoming one of the most popular cryptocurrencies to invest in as it has become well known for its super quick transaction speeds and its leading blockchain technology. In order to access the EOS blockchain, a trader must own EOS coins. One of the main objectives of EOS is to remove all user fees for transactions and merchants, which makes it appealing to traders looking to save on transaction costs.

For South African traders EOS is a tempting cryptocurrency to invest in because it shows promising price growth for 2019, especially as it was announced that there will be a big news announcement regarding EOS given this June which is likely to cause market prices to rise.

About the author

Luke Robinson is an author and editor who has written for various publications on matters of cryptocurrency and trading. His passion is to continue to share his insights and market trading news as much as possible.

Tell us your story

Would you like to write for nichemarket just like Luke has? Find out how to submit a guest post and when you're ready, you can contact us.

Are you looking to promote your business?

South African finance businesses can create your free business listing on nichemarket. The more information you provide about your business, the easier it will be for your customers to find you online. 

Registering with nichemarket is easy; all you will need to do is head over to our sign up form and follow the instructions. If you require a more detailed guide on how to create your profile or your listing, then we highly recommend you check out the following articles.

• How to create a nichemarketer profile
• How to create a nichemarket business listing

Recommended reading

If you enjoyed this post and have time to spare why not check out these related posts and dive deeper down the rabbit hole that is cryptocurrency.

• Why South African Non-Profits Should Consider Accepting Cryptocurrency Donations
• Why Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Is The Future Of Money
• 23 Ways To Earn Cryptocurrency
• Hot Wallets To Store Your Cryptocurrency

Tags: cryptocurrency, guest post