Coronavirus & Altcoins: Why are Some Crypto Assets Beating Bitcoin?

Much of the discussion on the economic fallout that the coronavirus has caused in the cryptosphere has been focused around Bitcoin–perhaps rightfully so. After all, as the largest cryptocurrency by market cap and the coin with the largest share of institutional cash, BTC is arguably the most ‘visible’ crypto asset.

The Most Diverse Audience to Date at FMLS 2020 – Where Finance Meets Innovation

However, the rise of the coronavirus has also had a number of striking effects on other cryptocurrency assets, and unlike Bitcoin, not all of them have been negative.

For example, in the stablecoin sphere, the market cap of Binance USD (BUSD) has more than doubled, rising from $68 million to roughly $190 million at press time. Similarly, Circle’s USD stablecoin jumped from roughly $440 million to $727 million over the same time period; Paxos Standard (PAX) grew from $200 million to $246 million.

Additionally, David Waslen, chief executive of HedgeTrade, pointed out to Tether (USDT),…