Ethereum Is the Best-Performing Asset Class of 2020

Digital assets issued on Ethereum appear to comprise the strongest asset class of 2020 with an average year-to-date gain of 130%
Digital assets issued on Ethereum appear to comprise the strongest asset class of 2020 with an average year-to-date gain of 130%

The average performance across Ethereum (ETH)-based assets has been a nearly 130% year-to-date (YTD) gain, according to data published by market data aggregator Messari.

The data provides an overview of the 178 assets that currently exist on Ethereum, totaling a combined market capitalization of $63.7 billion — just shy of 20% of the entire crypto capitalization.

Including stablecoins, 124 of the assets have posted a YTD gain, meaning that 70% of Ethereum-based tokens have increased in value despite the shocks felt across the global economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

70% of ETH-based assets post gains

10 ETH-based tokens have posted YTD gains exceeding 500%, including major decentralized finance protocols Bancor (BNT) and Kyber Network (KNC).

One-third of Ethereum-based markets have more than doubled in value since the start of the year, with Ether ranking as the 41st-strongest performing asset with YTD gains of 142%.

15 tokens have suffered single-digit percentage losses, while nine assets have shed over half of their value during 2020 so far.

Stablecoins dominate Ethereum token rankings

Excluding Tether, only Ether and Crypto.com Coin (CRO) sit among the top 10 crypto assets by market cap, closely followed by the 12th-ranked Chainlink (LINK). 

Bitfinex’s Unus Sed Leo (LEO) token and the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin are also ranked among the 20-largest cryptocurrencies.

The rankings highlight Ethereum’s popularity among stablecoin issuers, with seven of the 25-largest ETH-based assets comprising stable tokens.