Cryptocurrency, a digital asset, emerged in 2009 and has become a major financial phenomenon.
Satoshi Nakamoto created the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, by mining the initial block in 2009. Since then, the cryptocurrency landscape has evolved significantly.
Today, thousands of digital currencies exist, serving diverse purposes such as decentralized finance (DeFi), NFTs, and meme coins.
We will explore the number of cryptocurrencies, the factors driving their rapid growth, and the significance of this expanding digital market.
How Many Cryptocurrencies Are There?
As of 2024, there are 2.52 million cryptocurrencies, a fivefold increase from the 2021 figure of 0.44 million.
Cryptocurrencies exceeded 1 million in 2022, reaching 1.15 million, representing a 159.2% increase from the previous year. By the end of 2023, the total had grown to 1.98 million, reflecting a 72.3% year-on-year increase.
This significant growth highlights the rapid expansion and increasing diversity within the cryptocurrency market.
| Year | Total No. Of Crypto Token |
| 2021 | 443,513 |
| 2022 | 1,149,763 |
| 2023 | 1,981,579 |
| 2024 | 2,522,209 |
Number Of Active Cryptocurrencies Projects
In 2024, there are about 9,844 active cryptocurrencies listed on CoinMarketCap.
The latest reports indicate that, as of now, in 2024, there are almost 10,025 active cryptocurrency projects.
In 2013, there were about 66 active cryptocurrency projects. As of August 2024, this number has surpassed 10,000, reflecting a surge of 15,089.39%.
How Many Cryptocurrencies Have Failed?
According to CoinGecko reports, nearly 50% of cryptocurrencies have failed. Since 2014, CoinGecko has listed 24,000 cryptocurrencies, of which 14,039 have ceased to exist.
Most of these failures came from projects launched during the 2020-2021 bull run, where 7,530 projects shut down, accounting for 53.6% of all dead cryptocurrencies on CoinGecko.
Over 11,000 cryptocurrencies were listed during this period, with around 70% failing since then.
Additionally, approximately 1,450 projects failed during the 2017-2018 bull run.
Records show that in 2022, almost 520 cryptocurrency projects died, while 289 listed cryptocurrencies failed in 2023.
| Year | No. Of Cryptocurrency Projects Failed (As per Coingecko) |
| 2014 | 37 |
| 2015 | 27 |
| 2016 | 32 |
| 2017 | 346 |
| 2018 | 1,104 |
| 2019 | 1,154 |
| 2020 | 1,806 |
| 2021 | 5,724 |
| 2022 | 3,520 |
| 2023 | 289 |
Crypto Tokens in Circulation
As of September 2024, ArbDoge AI tops the list with the largest token supply, reaching around 174,455.897 trillion tokens.
Baby Doge Coin and Kichu Inu are close behind, with 149,634.315 trillion and 93,136,097 trillion tokens in circulation.
Conversely, cVault.finance has the smallest token supply, with just 10,000 tokens available. Yearn.finance and DFI.Money also have notably low supplies, with around 33,352 and 38,596 tokens, respectively.
Top 10 Cryptocurrencies By Market Cap
Here’s a list of the 10 cryptocurrencies with the highest market capitalization.
| Cryptocurrency | Market Capitalization |
| Bitcoin | $1.12 trillion |
| Ethereum | $280 billion |
| Tether | $118 billion |
| BNB | $74 billion |
| Solana | $61 billion |
| USDC | $35 billion |
| XRP | $30 billion |
| Dogecoin | $14 billion |
| Toncoin | $13.22 billion |
| TRON | $13.21 billion |
New Crypto Tokens Launched Statistics
In January 2023, approximately 37,970 new tokens were launched.
During the Memecoin season in May 2023, this number surged to about 104,118 new tokens created within that month.
Another spike occurred in late February 2024, coinciding with a new Memecoin season, leading to the launch of around 195,735 new tokens by the end of March 2024.
This pattern indicates that the creation of new tokens is closely linked to periods of heightened interest in Memecoins.
| Month | New Tokens Created |
| Jan 2023 | 37,970 |
| Feb 2023 | 41,631 |
| Mar 2023 | 49,829 |
| Apr 2023 | 53,686 |
| May 2023 | 104,118 |
| June 2023 | 75,786 |
| July 2023 | 86,376 |
| Aug 2023 | 88,963 |
| Sep 2023 | 75,947 |
| Oct 2023 | 63,863 |
| Nov 2023 | 66,154 |
| Dec 2023 | 87,493 |
| Jan 2024 | 134,647 |
| Feb 2024 | 118,264 |
| Mar 2024 | 195,735 |
| April 2024 | 91,984 |
| May 2024 | 1,328,359 |
How Many Cryptos or Tokens are there in 2024?
- Two of the top 10 cryptocurrencies, Tether and USDC, are tied directly to the value of the US dollar. (Source – explodingtopics.com)
- Back in April 2013, CoinMarketCap reported only seven cryptocurrencies in existence. (Source – explodingtopics.com)
- By 2014, Bitcoin’s price had more than doubled, reaching $378.05, and around 76,000 merchants globally accepted it as a form of payment. (Source – explodingtopics.com)
- Bitcoin and Ethereum have a market cap nearly four times bigger than the combined value of the other 20 cryptocurrencies. (Source – explodingtopics.com)
- The top five cryptocurrencies each have a market cap exceeding $60 billion. (Source – explodingtopics.com)
- Of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap, 9 are priced below $5.(Source – explodingtopics.com)
- As per Coinmarketcap, on September 4, 2024, the total value of all cryptocurrencies was approximately $2.02 trillion, with Bitcoin accounting for about $1.14 trillion. (Source – Bankrate.com)
- According to Digiconomist, a single Bitcoin transaction has a carbon footprint equivalent to over 762,000 Visa transactions. (Source – Bankrate.com)
- By 2023, 65% of cryptocurrency projects had become “deadcoins,” meaning they had ceased to exist. (Source – ccn.com)
- Cryptocurrencies launched in 2021 have experienced the highest failure rate, with 5,724 projects going inactive by January 2024. (Source – ccn.com)
- Bitcoin is the most widely owned cryptocurrency in Australia. (Source – Forbes.com)
- Though no specific regulations govern it, cryptocurrency ranks as the eighth largest economy globally. (Source – enterpriseappstoday.com)
About the Authors
Ayanika Das
Ayanika is an experienced content writer with a background in Hotel Management and a master's in hospitality administration from IHM Calcutta. With her expertise in content creation and copywriting, Ayanika has collaborated with numerous companies across various sectors. She's currently focusing on the crypto and investment sectors and crafting in-depth pieces about different aspects of the crypto space.
