Today, there are thousands of crypto coins out there, and many of these have a promising future within the market. However, throughout 2022, we see certain coins continue to rise and fall in short periods—meaning it's hard to know which cryptos have a truly promising future. So, today, we'll discuss which coins you should look out for in 2022 and why.

1. XRP (XRP)

screenshot of ripple website homepage

You may have heard of XRP before, as it's a well-known crypto with significant prevalence in the market. At the time of writing, XRP is the seventh most popular cryptocurrency in the world, with a 24-hour trading volume of over a billion dollars. But what makes this particular coin so sought-after?

Launched in 2021 by Ripple, XRP was designed to facilitate fast, scalable, and affordable transactions between platforms. XRP transactions take just 3-5 seconds to process and cost an average of $0.0002. Compared to other big cryptos like Bitcoin, XRP's transaction times and fees are much more convenient and make cryptocurrency accessible to everyone.

Though XRP only has a small value of less than a dollar in 2022, this doesn't mean it's an unsuccessful coin. Rather, it has a seemingly bright future in the market due to its ability to offer cheap and quick transactions to its users.

2. Elrond (EGLD)

elrond coin website homepage

Since entering the crypto market in September 2020, Elrond has seen peaks and lows. But its price grew steadily throughout 2021, reaching a peak of $490 in November 2021. Unfortunately, since then, Elrond's value has decreased significantly, standing at around $50 at the time of writing. Though this may sound concerning, it's important to note that many cryptocurrencies have suffered throughout 2022, with Elrond no exception.

Like XRP, Elrond can offer super-fast transactions. This particular network uses a technique known as sharding to achieve this, wherein one blockchain is split into multiple blockchain "shards." These are individual chains, each with a specific function. One may be for governance, while another may handle transactions. Splitting the workload in this way makes blockchains more scalable and allows transactions to be processed in less time.

Elrond is also supported by Maiar, a popular crypto wallet and staking app. You can earn Elrond using Maiar via staking it through a wide range of providers, where you can earn some solid rewards.

3. Ethereum (ETH)

ethereum website homepage

If you're interested in cryptocurrency, you've definitely heard of Ethereum. Behind Bitcoin, it's currently the most popular and valuable coin on the market (though there's a considerable price difference between the two).

Ethereum's market cap is also pretty astonishing, currently sitting at almost $200 billion. It has an equally commendable 24-hour trading volume of $18.7 billion. So, even though this crypto took a hit in the first half of 2022, it's still a key player with a lot to offer, especially because of the Ethereum blockchain. This is currently the most popular blockchain in the world and can be used to develop tokens, dApps, NFTs, and other DeFi services.

What's more, Ethereum has begun its release of ETH 2.0, a hard fork to a new proof of stake blockchain that will provide more efficient and environmentally friendly transactions. This is great news for Ethereum and the crypto market as a whole and makes Ethereum a solid option for those who want to get involved with crypto without damaging the planet.

4. BNB (BNB)

bnb coin webpage screenshot

You may know the name Binance from the massively popular cryptocurrency exchange. But Binance has also developed a cryptocurrency known as BNB (or Build'N'Build). BNB now has a huge 24-hour trading volume of almost a billion dollars, which reflects its current popularity. This coin was initially known as Binance Coin, but this changed when Binance decided that the coin had developed into something beyond the Binance name.

BNB is the native currency of the BNB Chain ecosystem. This consists of the BNB Beacon Chain and BNB Smart Chain. The BNB Smart Chain is now massively popular and competes with Ethereum as a top-tier blockchain for dApp, NFT, and token development. BNB's fees are also relatively low, meaning you won't incur high additional charges each time you conduct a transaction.

5. Decentraland (MANA)

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Decentraland is a pretty interesting platform that differs from many others you'll see in the blockchain realm. The players in this 3D virtual world rely on crypto-based assets for buying or selling land and objects. And this platform has developed its own coin, known as MANA.

MANA was initially released onto the crypto market in 2017 and didn't see any major price rises until 2021 (which makes sense, given the huge boost in crypto popularity over the past year). It has a current daily trading volume of over $120 million and a market cap of over $1.4 billion. Its intriguing VR platform and well-established coin make it an interesting cryptocurrency to watch throughout 2022.

6. Solana (SOL)

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Solana (SOL) is a big name in crypto, currently ranking ninth in the most popular crypto rankings, next to industry giants like Bitcoin and Ethereum. It has an impressive 24-hour trading volume of over 800 million and a market cap of around $11.5 billion.

Solana's blockchain can be used to build a range of DeFi services. It can also process transactions quickly (though its transaction time is lengthier than other cryptos mentioned here) and gives its users the benefit of super low transaction fees.

If you're interested in Solana, it's also worth checking out the wide range of DeFi projects they support, as well as the Rust modules they provide for beginners and the funding rounds they contribute to.

7. Shiba Inu (SHIB)

shiba inu website homepage screenshot

Nope, this isn't Dogecoin. Rather, Shiba Inu was created to replace Dogecoin entirely. Like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu is a meme coin based on the infamous "Doge" internet meme. But, unlike Dogecoin, Shiba Inu is a token built on the Ethereum blockchain. This token has certainly made its name in the market, with a 24-hour trading volume of over $300 million and a market cap of $6.7 billion.

Shiba Inu has become widely popular due to the hype behind its aim, which was to replace Dogecoin. It was even nicknamed the "Dogecoin killer" and garnered many loyal followers using this angle.

There's no denying that a single Shiba Inu coin is worth next to nothing. But investors tend to buy huge swathes of this coin in order to make a big profit. Currently, the crypto's price is generally on the rise, though it fluctuates all the time.

8. Tether (USDT)

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Tether is different from the other cryptos listed here in that it is a stablecoin that is pegged to the price of the U.S dollar. This makes it far less susceptible to price dips and crashes, and is great for those interested in DeFi. It is the world's first stablecoin and is currently the third most popular crypto in the game.

However, Tether isn't a buy low, sell high kind of crypto. Its price is designed to remain at one U.S dollar, so it isn't suitable for those looking to make huge profits in a short period.

9. Avalanche (AVAX)

avalanche website homepage screenshot

Avalanche, or AVAX, has made a solid name for itself within the crypto industry, with a market cap of over $1.4 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of over $121 million. However, what's notable about Avalanche is its blockchain network and what it offers users.

The Avalanche network uses subnets to increase scalability and lower transaction times. These subnets are sub-blockchains that can manage the transactional load of a given project so the main chain isn't overrun. This allows Avalanche to process 4,500 transactions every second and has super low transaction and gas fees, making it an accessible crypto for everyone.

10. The Sandbox (SAND)

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The Sandbox is a gaming metaverse that allows users to earn crypto through gaming. In other words, it allows for play-to-earn crypto gaming. The platform's native currency, SAND, exists on the Ethereum blockchain.

Users can create and trade NFT assets within The Sandbox and build unique metaverse games. SAND can be earned through gaming and asset sales, as it powers the entire ecosystem's economy.

The Crypto Market Is Full of Potential

One of the cryptocurrency industry's most notable characteristics is its unpredictability. But this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The crypto world's constant rises and falls make it incredibly intriguing, and its ability to make people millionaires overnight gives it its true allure. Though it's hard to know where any coin will go next, it's useful to know which are most promising and offer something different.