A good example of this is RavenCoin which, by one calculation, accounts for 4.32% of the total rated power of the top 20 cryptocurrencies but has a market capitalization of just 0.06%. This is primarily because these currencies use ASIC-resistant algorithms that consume significantly more energy than should be expected relative to how much of the cryptocurrency market they represent. Cryptocurrencies that instead use a ‘Proof of Storage’ or ‘Proof of Stake’ system use far less energy, as do currencies using a technology called block lattice, which doesn’t require mining.Įven among ‘Proof of Work’ cryptocurrencies, however, some are more energy intensive than others. Why? Because Bitcoin relies on a ‘Proof of Work’ system that involves huge amounts of calculations (and, thus, processing power) to produce a single token. That said, some cryptocurrencies are inherently more energy efficient than Bitcoin. Scale them up, however, and they may be just as bad, if not worse than the cryptocurrency we currently love to hate. Many much smaller cryptocurrencies, for instance, naturally have a far lower energy footprint because they involve far fewer daily transactions compared to Bitcoin. This is because there are so many parameters at play. Truth be told, it’s incredibly difficult to point to any one currency as being ‘greener’ than others. Are you a Dogecoin fan? See why everyone’s favorite canine-inspired cryptocurrency didn’t make this list here. Keep the suggestions coming, ideally with solid leads/info on why a token deserves attention from investors who care about sustainability, and I’ll do my best to take a look. We’ve also written recently about the push for greater sustainability in the NFT community. UPDATE: Following the immense interest in this topic and great leads on other green cryptocurrencies, I’ve added even more tokens/networks below for our 2022 list. As Bitcoin rises in value, the climate suffers.With more than 4,500 mineable coins and tokens in existence, which, if any, are the most sustainable cryptocurrencies? Table of Contents There’s been a lot of attention on Bitcoin’s shocking environmental impact in recent months, and while efforts are being made to minimize the carbon footprint of the cryptocurrency, some investors are jumping ship in favor of greener options.

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