Tag: whitepaper

Ethereum vs Bitcoin Whitepaper Comparison (2026)

Ethereum vs Bitcoin Whitepaper Comparison. Bitcoin and Ethereum logos representing a comparison
  • Bitcoin introduced decentralized digital money without relying on banks or governments.
  • Ethereum expanded blockchain technology by adding programmable smart contracts.
  • Both whitepapers remain among the most influential documents in blockchain history.
  • Bitcoin prioritizes security, scarcity, and censorship resistance.
  • Ethereum focuses on programmability, decentralized applications (dApps), and ecosystem growth.

Few documents have shaped modern technology as much as the Bitcoin and Ethereum whitepapers. While thousands of blockchain projects have launched since then, these two papers continue to influence developers, researchers, investors, and policymakers around the world.

The Bitcoin whitepaper, published in 2008 by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto, solved one of the internet’s biggest problems: how to transfer value digitally without trusting a central authority.

Less than six years later, Vitalik Buterin introduced the Ethereum whitepaper, proposing a blockchain that could do much more than process payments. Instead of supporting only digital money, Ethereum aimed to become a programmable platform capable of running decentralized applications and smart contracts.

In 2026, both networks are among the largest blockchain ecosystems, but their original goals remain surprisingly relevant. This Ethereum vs Bitcoin whitepaper comparison explores how each project approaches decentralization, consensus, scalability, security, and innovation while highlighting the lasting impact of their original vision.

Bitcoin Whitepaper Overview

Published in October 2008, “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” introduced a decentralized payment network where users could send money directly without banks or financial intermediaries.

The paper addresses a fundamental issue known as the double-spending problem, where digital assets could theoretically be copied and spent multiple times. Bitcoin solved this using Proof of Work, cryptographic hashing, and a distributed network of nodes.

The whitepaper focuses on:

  • Peer-to-peer digital payments
  • Decentralization
  • Proof of Work consensus
  • Immutable transaction history
  • Trust through cryptography rather than institutions

Interestingly, the document is only nine pages long, yet it laid the foundation for an entirely new financial industry.

Ethereum Whitepaper Overview

Released in late 2013, the Ethereum whitepaper proposed a broader vision.

Rather than creating another digital currency, Ethereum introduced a blockchain that developers could program. Smart contracts became the core innovation, allowing software to execute automatically once predefined conditions were met.

The Ethereum whitepaper discusses:

  • Programmable blockchain infrastructure
  • Smart contracts
  • Decentralized applications (dApps)
  • Token creation
  • General-purpose blockchain computing

Instead of limiting blockchain to financial transfers, Ethereum transformed it into an open computing platform.

Many of today’s largest blockchain sectors, including decentralized finance (DeFi), NFTs, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and blockchain gaming, trace their origins to ideas described in Ethereum’s original whitepaper.

Core Vision: Money vs Programmable Infrastructure

This is perhaps the biggest difference between the two whitepapers.

Bitcoin’s Vision

Bitcoin focuses on becoming decentralized digital money.

Its design prioritizes:

  • Security
  • Scarcity
  • Predictability
  • Resistance to censorship
  • Financial independence

The network intentionally limits complexity to reduce potential attack surfaces.

Ethereum’s Vision

Ethereum views blockchain as programmable infrastructure.

Rather than replacing only money, Ethereum seeks to decentralize applications across multiple industries, including finance, gaming, identity, governance, and digital ownership.

Its philosophy embraces flexibility even if that introduces additional technical complexity.

Smart Contracts: Ethereum’s Biggest Innovation

One feature separates Ethereum from Bitcoin more than any other.

Bitcoin supports limited scripting for transaction validation but intentionally avoids becoming a fully programmable platform.

Ethereum introduced smart contracts, allowing developers to create applications directly on-chain.

For example, instead of using a centralized marketplace, a decentralized exchange can automatically execute token trades through smart contracts without requiring a trusted intermediary.

Today, billions of dollars move through decentralized applications powered by Ethereum’s programming model.

This concept became one of the most important innovations in blockchain technology.

Consensus Mechanisms

The whitepapers also differ significantly in how they approach network security.

Bitcoin

Bitcoin relies on Proof of Work (PoW).

Miners compete to solve complex mathematical problems, validating transactions while securing the network.

Advantages include:

  • Proven security
  • High decentralization
  • Strong resistance to attacks

Trade-offs include:

  • High energy consumption
  • Lower transaction throughput

Ethereum

Ethereum originally proposed Proof of Work but later transitioned to Proof of Stake (PoS).

Validators secure the network by staking ETH instead of using computational power.

Benefits include:

  • Lower energy usage
  • Improved scalability potential
  • Reduced hardware requirements

Although Ethereum’s consensus evolved after the original whitepaper, its broader goal of creating a scalable programmable blockchain remained consistent.

Monetary Policy

Bitcoin and Ethereum also differ in how they manage their native assets.

Bitcoin

It has a fixed maximum supply of 21 million BTC.

This predictable issuance schedule supports its reputation as “digital gold.”

Many investors view Bitcoin primarily as a long-term store of value.

Ethereum

Ethereum’s whitepaper takes a more flexible approach.

Instead of enforcing a strict supply cap, Ethereum prioritizes network functionality and ecosystem growth.

Over time, protocol upgrades introduced mechanisms such as fee burning and staking rewards, creating a dynamic monetary policy that adapts to network activity.

Security Philosophy

Bitcoin favors simplicity.

Its scripting language intentionally limits functionality, reducing the likelihood of software vulnerabilities.

Ethereum accepts greater complexity to enable programmable applications.

While this unlocks innovation, it also introduces new security challenges.

Smart contract bugs, protocol exploits, and application-level vulnerabilities have occasionally affected Ethereum-based projects. However, these issues generally arise from application code rather than the Ethereum blockchain itself.

The comparison highlights an important trade-off:

  • Bitcoin maximizes stability.
  • Ethereum maximizes functionality.

Scalability Approach

Neither whitepaper fully solved blockchain scalability.

Instead, each project follows a different long-term strategy.

Bitcoin primarily scales through Layer 2 technologies such as the Lightning Network, allowing faster and cheaper payments while preserving base-layer security.

Ethereum supports Layer 2 rollups, modular blockchain architecture, and continuous protocol improvements that increase transaction capacity without sacrificing decentralization.

As blockchain adoption grows, both ecosystems increasingly rely on secondary layers rather than expanding the base chain alone.

Ecosystem Growth

Bitcoin’s ecosystem remains focused on payments, savings, and institutional adoption.

Ethereum’s ecosystem has expanded into numerous sectors, including:

  • Decentralized finance (DeFi)
  • NFTs
  • Stablecoins
  • Gaming
  • Tokenization
  • DAOs
  • Real-world assets (RWAs)
  • AI-powered blockchain applications

This broader application layer reflects Ethereum’s original goal of creating a blockchain for developers rather than simply a digital currency.

Ethereum vs Bitcoin Whitepaper Comparison Table

Feature Bitcoin Ethereum
Publication Year 2008 2013
Creator Satoshi Nakamoto Vitalik Buterin
Primary Goal Digital cash Programmable blockchain
Consensus (Current) Proof of Work Proof of Stake
Smart Contracts Limited scripting Full smart contract support
Supply Fixed (21 million BTC) Dynamic monetary policy
Primary Use Cases Payments, store of value dApps, DeFi, NFTs, DAOs
Programming Capability Minimal Extensive
Security Philosophy Simplicity Flexibility

Which Whitepaper Has Had the Greater Impact?

The answer depends on how impact is measured.

Bitcoin introduced decentralized money, creating an entirely new asset class and inspiring thousands of blockchain projects.

Ethereum expanded blockchain beyond payments, enabling developers to build decentralized applications across nearly every industry.

Without Bitcoin, Ethereum likely would not exist.

Without Ethereum, blockchain innovation may have remained focused almost entirely on digital payments.

Together, these two whitepapers define the foundation of today’s blockchain ecosystem.

Final Thoughts

The Ethereum vs Bitcoin Whitepaper comparison is not about determining which project is better. Instead, it highlights two complementary visions for blockchain technology.

Bitcoin focuses on creating secure, censorship-resistant digital money with predictable monetary policy.

Ethereum builds on that foundation by transforming blockchain into programmable infrastructure capable of supporting decentralized applications across finance, gaming, identity, and countless other industries.

More than a decade after their publication, both whitepapers continue to influence protocol design, blockchain research, and emerging Web3 ecosystems. Anyone interested in cryptocurrency, blockchain development, or decentralized technology should read both documents to understand how the industry evolved and where it may be heading next.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Is Ethereum based on the Bitcoin whitepaper?

No. Ethereum was inspired by Bitcoin’s decentralized architecture but introduced a programmable blockchain capable of running smart contracts and decentralized applications.

Which whitepaper came first?

The Bitcoin whitepaper was published in 2008. The Ethereum whitepaper followed in 2013.

Does Bitcoin support smart contracts?

Bitcoin supports limited scripting for transaction validation but does not offer the flexible smart contract functionality found on Ethereum.

Why did Ethereum choose a different approach?

Ethereum aimed to create a blockchain platform where developers could build decentralized applications instead of focusing solely on digital payments.

Which whitepaper should beginners read first?

Most beginners start with the Bitcoin whitepaper because it introduces the core concepts of decentralized digital money. The Ethereum whitepaper is easier to appreciate after understanding Bitcoin’s original design.

Disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or legal advice. Always conduct your own research before investing in cryptocurrencies or blockchain-related assets. This article was originally published on AllCryptoWhitepapers.com

Ethereum vs XRP Whitepaper Comparison (2026): Architecture, Consensus & Key Differences

Ethereum vs XRP Whitepaper Comparison 2026 illustration
  • Ethereum focuses on programmable smart contracts and decentralized applications.
  • XRP Ledger prioritizes high-speed global payments and asset transfers.
  • Ethereum uses Proof-of-Stake with thousands of validators.
  • XRP Ledger relies on the XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol instead of mining or staking.
  • Ethereum supports one of the largest developer ecosystems, while XRP specializes in financial infrastructure.

Ethereum and XRP are among the oldest and most influential blockchain networks, but they were never designed to solve the same problem. Ethereum introduced programmable smart contracts and decentralized applications, while XRP focused on making global payments faster and cheaper.

Their whitepapers reflect these different ambitions.

Ethereum’s original whitepaper, published by Vitalik Buterin in 2013, proposed a decentralized world computer capable of running smart contracts on a global scale. XRP’s foundations come from the XRP Ledger whitepaper, which introduced a distributed payment network built for speed, efficiency, and cross-border settlements without relying on energy-intensive mining.

Although both networks continue to evolve in 2026, their original design philosophies remain visible in their architecture, consensus mechanisms, and ecosystem priorities.

This comparison explores how the Ethereum and XRP whitepapers differ and what those differences mean for developers, businesses, and investors.

Vision and Purpose

Ethereum was created to become a decentralized platform where developers could build applications that operate without centralized control. Rather than supporting only digital currency, Ethereum introduced programmable blockchain infrastructure capable of running virtually any financial or digital application.

Its whitepaper envisioned decentralized finance, token creation, NFTs, gaming, decentralized identity, and countless future applications.

The XRP Ledger pursued a different mission.

Instead of becoming a global computing platform, XRP aimed to modernize international payments. The whitepaper focused on eliminating delays, reducing transaction costs, and enabling financial institutions to move value across borders almost instantly.

Even today, these goals define how both ecosystems continue to grow.

Architecture

Ethereum uses an account-based model similar to traditional banking systems.

Each wallet maintains balances and contract states, allowing smart contracts to modify blockchain data directly. This structure provides tremendous flexibility and supports complex decentralized applications across multiple industries.

Ethereum also follows a modular scaling strategy.

The Layer 1 blockchain prioritizes decentralization and security, while Layer 2 networks handle much of the transaction execution to improve scalability.

By contrast, XRP Ledger uses a simpler architecture optimized for payments.

It records account balances while validating transactions through its own consensus protocol. Because XRP was not designed as a full smart contract platform, its architecture remains lightweight and highly efficient.

Recent additions like Hooks and the XRP EVM sidechain expand programmability, but payments remain the network’s primary focus.

Consensus Mechanism

Perhaps the biggest difference between the two whitepapers is how consensus works.

Ethereum now operates under Proof-of-Stake (PoS).

Validators stake ETH to secure the network and verify transactions. This transition significantly reduced Ethereum’s energy consumption while maintaining decentralization across thousands of independent validators worldwide.

The XRP Ledger takes a completely different approach.

Instead of staking or mining, trusted validators participate in the XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol. Validators compare transaction proposals until a supermajority agrees on the ledger’s next state.

This process enables transaction finality within seconds while consuming very little energy.

Ethereum emphasizes decentralized validator participation.

XRP emphasizes transaction speed and operational efficiency.

Smart Contracts and Development

Ethereum remains the industry leader for smart contract development.

Developers use Solidity and the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to create decentralized exchanges, lending protocols, NFT marketplaces, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), gaming applications, and enterprise solutions.

The Ethereum whitepaper specifically envisioned blockchain becoming a programmable platform rather than merely a payment network.

XRP originally offered limited smart contract functionality because its primary objective was payments.

However, the ecosystem has gradually expanded through sidechains and interoperability initiatives that allow developers to build more advanced decentralized applications while preserving the efficiency of the XRP Ledger itself.

Despite this progress, Ethereum continues to offer a much broader development environment.

Scalability and Performance

Scalability has always been one of Ethereum’s biggest engineering challenges.

The network balances decentralization with security, which naturally limits Layer 1 throughput. Ethereum addresses this through rollups and Layer 2 ecosystems that process thousands of transactions while settling security back to the main chain.

This modular design continues to shape Ethereum’s long-term roadmap.

XRP Ledger approaches scalability differently.

Its payment-focused architecture allows transactions to settle within approximately three to five seconds while processing significantly more transactions per second than Ethereum’s base layer.

Because XRP does not execute highly complex smart contracts directly on the main network, it maintains consistently fast performance.

Tokenomics

Ethereum’s native asset, ETH, serves several functions.

It pays network transaction fees, secures the blockchain through staking, and supports decentralized applications across the ecosystem.

Following Ethereum’s fee-burning mechanism, portions of transaction fees are permanently removed from circulation, creating deflationary periods depending on network activity.

XRP follows another model.

The total XRP supply was created at launch.

Instead of issuing new coins through mining or staking rewards, a tiny portion of XRP is permanently destroyed with every transaction. This mechanism helps reduce spam while slowly decreasing total supply over time.

Although both assets support their respective ecosystems, their economic models reflect very different priorities.

Decentralization

Ethereum places decentralization at the center of its design.

Thousands of validators, open-source contributors, independent Layer 2 projects, and a large global developer community collectively maintain the ecosystem.

Governance evolves through Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), encouraging broad community participation.

XRP Ledger also operates as open-source software, but its validator model differs.

Validators are selected based on trusted node lists rather than economic staking. Supporters argue this provides fast and reliable consensus, while critics believe validator selection is less decentralized than Ethereum’s validator network.

The debate continues, but both systems prioritize different trade-offs.

Real-World Use Cases

Ethereum has become the foundation for much of the decentralized economy.

Major use cases include:

  • Decentralized finance (DeFi)
  • Stablecoins
  • NFTs
  • Tokenization of real-world assets
  • Decentralized identity
  • Blockchain gaming
  • Enterprise blockchain infrastructure

XRP remains strongest in payment-focused applications.

Its primary use cases include:

  • Cross-border settlements
  • Liquidity solutions
  • Banking infrastructure
  • Payment corridors
  • Digital asset transfers
  • Enterprise financial services

Rather than competing directly, Ethereum and XRP increasingly serve different segments of the blockchain industry.

Ethereum vs XRP Whitepaper Comparison Table

Feature Ethereum XRP Ledger
Primary Goal Decentralized computing Global payments
Whitepaper Focus Smart contracts Cross-border payments
Consensus Proof-of-Stake XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol
Smart Contracts Native support Limited on main chain
Transaction Speed Seconds to minutes depending on layer Around 3–5 seconds
Scalability Strategy Layer 2 rollups High-throughput Layer 1
Native Token ETH XRP
Developer Ecosystem Very large Growing
Primary Users Developers, enterprises, DeFi Banks, payment providers

Which Whitepaper Has the Better Design?

Neither whitepaper is objectively better because each solves a different problem.

Ethereum built the foundation for programmable blockchain infrastructure that powers decentralized finance and thousands of applications.

XRP Ledger focused on creating an efficient payment network capable of moving value globally with minimal cost and near-instant settlement.

Developers building decentralized applications will likely prefer Ethereum’s flexible architecture.

Financial institutions seeking efficient payment infrastructure may find XRP Ledger’s design more aligned with their needs.

The two networks increasingly complement rather than replace one another.

Final Thoughts

The Ethereum and XRP whitepapers demonstrate two distinct visions for blockchain technology.

Ethereum transformed blockchain into a programmable platform supporting decentralized applications across countless industries.

The XRP Ledger is an optimized blockchain for one specific purpose: making global payments faster, cheaper, and more efficient.

More than a decade later, both approaches remain highly relevant.

As blockchain adoption continues expanding in 2026, understanding the original design philosophy behind each network provides valuable insight into why both ecosystems continue to occupy important but different positions within the digital asset landscape.

FAQs

Is Ethereum faster than XRP?

No. XRP Ledger generally settles transactions within a few seconds, while Ethereum often relies on Layer 2 networks to achieve similar speeds.

Why does Ethereum use Proof-of-Stake?

Proof-of-stake improves energy efficiency and allows validators to secure the network by staking ETH instead of mining.

Does XRP support smart contracts?

The XRP Ledger has limited native smart contract functionality. Additional programmability is available through sidechains and ecosystem extensions.

Which blockchain is better for developers?

Ethereum offers a much larger developer ecosystem, extensive tools, and native smart contract support, making it the preferred platform for decentralized application development.

Why compare blockchain whitepapers?

Whitepapers explain the original goals, architecture, and design choices behind a blockchain, helping readers understand why networks evolve differently over time.

Tokenomics Explained: How to Analyze a Crypto Project Before Buying

Crypto tokenomics analysis illustration showing coin stacks, financial charts, and magnifying glass evaluating cryptocurrency supply and distribution

Most people who lose money in crypto do not lose it because they picked the wrong technology. They lose it because they ignored the economics. A project can have brilliant engineers, a real use case, and strong community backing — and still collapse if the underlying token model is broken.

That is what tokenomics is. It is the economic design of a crypto token: how it is created, distributed, used, and removed from circulation. Understanding it is one of the most practical skills any investor can develop before putting capital into a project.

What Tokenomics Actually Covers

The word combines “token” and “economics.” In practice, it refers to everything that governs a token’s supply and demand over time — total supply, how tokens are distributed, when they unlock, what utility they serve, and whether the model is sustainable or just designed to attract early buyers.

Every serious crypto project publishes this information in its whitepaper. The whitepaper database at AllCryptoWhitepapers covers over 3,900 projects, giving researchers direct access to the original documentation rather than relying on marketing summaries. Before you evaluate any token, start there.

Token Supply: The First Number to Check

There are three supply figures that matter. Total supply is the maximum number of tokens that will ever exist. Circulating supply is what is currently in the market. And fully diluted valuation (FDV) is what the project would be worth if all tokens were already in circulation at the current price.

That last number matters more than most investors realize. A token priced at $0.50 with a $500 million FDV is not cheap. It just has not released most of its supply yet.

Bitcoin’s fixed cap of 21 million coins is the most famous example of supply discipline. By contrast, many DeFi projects launched in 2021 with unlimited or loosely capped supplies, printing new tokens as staking rewards. When demand slowed, inflation outpaced it, and prices collapsed.

Check the Bitcoin whitepaper and compare its supply mechanics against newer projects—the contrast in design philosophy is immediately clear.

Token Distribution: Who Holds What

How tokens are divided among stakeholders reveals a project’s true priorities. The rough benchmarks that serious investors use today are 35 to 45 percent for community and ecosystem, 20 to 25 percent for treasury, 18 to 20 percent for the core team, 12 to 18 percent for investors, and a small allocation for advisors and public sale.

When team and investor allocations exceed 40 to 50 percent combined, the community is effectively funding insider enrichment. That is not speculation — it is what the numbers show when large unlocks hit the market.

Uniswap’s UNI token allocated 60 percent to the community at launch. That kind of distribution signals a project built for long-term users, not a quick exit for founders.

Vesting Schedules: The Most Overlooked Red Flag

Vesting controls when tokens are released to team members, investors, and advisors. A four-year vesting period with a one-year cliff—meaning no tokens are released for the first year, then gradually after that—is considered the current standard for team allocations. For investors, two to three year lockups with a six-month cliff are typical in well-structured projects.

Why does this matter? Because early investors and team members often bought or received tokens at prices far below market. Without vesting, nothing stops them from selling immediately after launch.

Terra/LUNA is the extreme case study. Anchor Protocol offered 20 percent annual yields on UST deposits, funded not by real revenue but by LUNA inflation and the expectation of perpetual new demand. When growth slowed, the model unraveled catastrophically. Both tokens collapsed to near zero within days. The tokenomics made that outcome inevitable — it was only a question of timing.

Always check when the next major token unlock is before buying. Large upcoming unlocks create predictable selling pressure, and the market often prices this in weeks before the event.

Token Utility: What the Token Is Actually For

A token without genuine utility is just speculation dressed up in a whitepaper. Ask a simple question: what happens to demand for this token if the price stops going up?

If the honest answer is “people stop buying it,” the utility is weak. Tokens with durable demand serve a function—they are required to pay transaction fees. participate in governance over valuable protocol decisions, access services, or earn a share of real protocol revenue.

Ethereum’s ETH is needed to pay gas fees on one of the most used blockchains in the world. Demand for block space creates demand for ETH independent of price speculation. The Ethereum whitepaper lays out this design explicitly. Compare it to any project where the token’s only stated use is governance over an empty protocol.

Inflation and Burn Mechanisms

Projects that issue new tokens as staking rewards are essentially running an inflation engine. This is not automatically bad — it depends on whether growing network usage absorbs the new supply. If it does not, inflation dilutes existing holders.

Deflationary mechanisms work in the opposite direction. Ethereum’s EIP-1559 upgrade introduced a fee burn that, during periods of high network activity, removes more ETH from circulation than is issued. That creates deflationary pressure tied directly to real usage. Binance runs quarterly BNB burns funded by exchange profits. Both are examples of supply reduction mechanisms grounded in actual revenue.

If a project burns tokens using proceeds from selling other tokens or from new investor capital rather than operating revenue, that is a warning sign. The model is circular and collapses when new money stops coming in.

A Practical Checklist Before You Buy

Before committing capital to any crypto project, work through these questions using the whitepaper as your primary source:

What are the total and circulating supplies, and what does the fully diluted valuation look like at the current price? How are tokens allocated between the team, investors, and community? When do major unlocks happen, and how large are they? What is the token used for, and does that use create organic demand? Is supply inflationary, deflationary, or capped, and does it make sense for the project’s stage?

The Crypto Definitions glossary at AllCryptoWhitepapers covers terms like token burn, vesting, circulating supply, and governance in plain language — useful context if any part of a whitepaper’s tokenomics section is unclear.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is tokenomics in simple terms?

“Tokenomics” describes the economic rules governing a cryptocurrency—how many tokens exist, but how they are distributed, what they are used for, and whether the model creates lasting value or just short-term price pressure are important questions.

Why do vesting schedules matter to investors?

Vesting prevents early holders from selling immediately after launch. Short or absent vesting on team and investor allocations is one of the most reliable warning signs that a project is not built for long-term users.

What is a red flag in token distribution?

When team and investor allocations together exceed 40 to 50 percent of total supply, or when vesting periods are under 12 months, expect significant sell pressure as those tokens unlock.

What is the difference between circulating supply and total supply?

Circulating supply is the number of tokens currently trading in the market. Total supply is the maximum that will ever exist. The gap between them represents future inflation — tokens that have not yet entered circulation.

Where can I find a project’s tokenomics data?

The whitepaper is the authoritative source. The AllCryptoWhitepapers database provides direct links to official whitepapers for over 3,900 actively traded projects.

How to find new cryptocurrency projects?

One of the biggest challenges in the crypto space is to find the right projects at the right time. There are hundreds of projects launched each month and it’s very difficult to pick the right ones. Most of the projects won’t last a year and some of them are only launched to scam you out of your money fast. The only option you have to navigate through this jungle of crypto projects, is to Do Your Own Research. I’ve made a short list with tips on how to find new cryptocurrency projects and how to research them. Hopefully you learn some new tricks and pick the right project!

Where do I find new tokens?

1. Social media
Check the buzz on social media. What I usually do is going to the accounts on Twitter that have a lot of followers. Those followers take every chance to shill their investments in their replies to the ‘crypto influencer’. Click on the articles, links and cash tags (the project’s abbreviation > $ followed by a few letters) and start your research. Or take a look at sites that keep track of new or trending accounts, such as Semrush. You can also subscribe to different trading groups in which lots of new projects are shilled. Those groups are risky though, because there are a lot of scammers in there and people who want to dump their bags on dumb investors, so do your proper research before jumping in.

2. Crypto charts
There are a few websites out there that make charts for almost every token. A great example is dextools.io. If you go to the site you can see the trending tokens (top 10). Click on those and start your research.

3. Trending coins
Coinmarketcap and coingecko both have a trending coin section. These are usually the coins that are looked up the most on the sites. Go to these project’s pages and research the tokens.

4. Verified Ethereum contracts
Etherscan has a great little features that not many know about, an overview of the smart contracts that have their source code checked. You can check all the verified contracts here. This is a great start for your research. I look for a project with a normal name  and high number of Txns and start from there. You click on the contract and on the contract page under ‘More Info’ you click on the Token Tracker ( if any). The next step is to look at the ‘Holders’ tab to see what the distribution is. The little document icon means that it’s a contract and contracts that look like this are burn addresses > 0x0000000000, so you can ignore those holders. You can check if the distribution is fine, not too many whales and not too many tokens airdropped via e.g. Disperse.app. I also check the tab ‘DEX TRADES’ to make sure the token is traded properly and is not being dumped (dextools is also good to check that).

5. Track whale wallets
To find these wallets you need to do some digging. There are multiple telegram and twitter accounts that show the big trades of whale wallets. When you have found these wallets, go to etherscan, check what they have in their bags and go from there. Always check if they bought these coins themselves or if they got them for advising or promoting, since this will make a difference in their ‘commitment to their bag’. You can also subscribe to certain services, such as nansen.ai, on which you can see all the trades of the wallets. Take into account that you aren’t the first to see those trades, so invest with caution.

6. Track newly registered crypto domains
This one requires a bit more knowledge of the existing crypto projects and their domains, but if you know what to look for you’ll definitely find some new projects early on! The trick is to go to websites like Whoisds or DNPedia and to research all the newly registered domains on a daily basis. Search for domains with tld’s like .finance or .app, depending on the current trend. Also look for domains that contain ‘token’, ‘swap’, ‘seigniorage’ or anything that is hyped. Make a list of all those domains and check them regularly for any updates and filter out the nonsense. I find about 2-5 domains each time that are promising. After you found the domains, start your research!

I’ve written multiple guides on whitepaper research, here’s one: Cryptocurrency Whitepaper Research for Beginners. We have thousands of whitepapers on file here.

How do I research these tokens?

1. Read the whitepaper :)!
For me this is always the first step. Don’t worry about the technical buzzwords, you just need to verify the following things.
– What problem are they solving?
– What is the token distribution/token economics? How much tokens are allocated to the team, used for marketing, % for public sale
– What is the token price for each stage of investments? Was their a seed sale and for how much? When do these tokens unlock (vesting)?
– What’s the public sale price? Fully diluted market cap? Runway for the team?
– Etc.

2. Social media
Search the project on social media. Go to their Twitter, Telegram, Discord etc. and read what the community says about the project. Focus on the people that are unhappy to see if there’s anything you should know, it’s ok to be skeptical, since you’re about to invest in the project. Follow the right people and ask questions.

3. Contracts
As explained above, you can get a lot of useful information by looking at the contracts and token on etherscan. Check if the contract is verified. You can also go to certain telegram groups to get them verified. Look at the trading patterns under DEX Trades, because when everybody is selling it’s usually not good news. Next thing is to check the holders and how the tokens are distributed and if there’s been a massive airdrop. Go to the wallets of the Whales (biggest holders) and see how they got their tokens, multiple buys or airdropped etc.).

4. Github
As a no-coder Github looks difficult. The best tip I can give is to check the number of commits. The more commits from different developers, the more work is done on the project and the bigger the chance is that they’re the real deal. Remember that Github is open source and most crypto projects will keep the most important parts of their code to themselves to avoid being copied, so when in doubt always ask the team if/when they’re open-sourcing their code.

5. Google is your friend
Google is your friend. Search the project’s name, the team, the token, partners etc. Make sure they are the real deal and can deliver what they promise. Google certain texts on their site and the whitepaper to verify that they’ve written that themselves and are not a copy or fork of a different project. Make sure to put the text between ” and ” to search for those exact words.

6. Ask questions
On discord, telegram, twitter you name is. There are no dumb questions and the team should be willing to answer them or to direct you to the right place with the answers. Do check pinned messages, medium articles and FAQ’s first since that would cover the most of your ‘dumb’ questions.

Conclusion

So that was my short list on how to find proper cryptocurrency projects and how to research them. I will update this list regularly and add things I missed!

John,

CEO All Crypto Whitepapers

Follow me on Twitter or Linkedin.

 

5 things you need to check before buying crypto

Whitepaper Research
5 things you need to check before buying crypto

Read more below:

In this article I will give you 5 pointers on how to recognize scam coins & projects through whitepaper research. Although most projects that turned out to be a scam had a great whitepaper, some of them gave away their bad intentions in the whitepaper. So before investing in any cryptocurrency, you should always check the whitepaper!

What is a whitepaper?
So what is a Whitepaper exactly? When a company intends to launch a new cryptocurrency, they usually set out all the details in a Whitepaper. This document contains the technical, financial and commercial information about the project. This document normally explains in plain language what they’re planning to build, to attract investors and other interested parties. In other words, the whitepaper explains the project’s purpose and process, the Why and the How.

Not every project or coin starts with a whitepaper. Litecoin started by giving a video presentation on ‘Creating Litecoin’ at a Coinbase event. Loom Network decided not to write a whitepaper, but immediately started developing and delivering code. Others are just forks of existing projects, like Bitcoin, so they don’t have their own whitepaper. Some projects bring out a Pink Paper, Green Paper or Yellow Paper and other projects, such as Cardano, bring out multiple whitepapers to describe every part of the tech they are building. Luckily, 99% of the cryptocurrencies and ICO’s still release a whitepaper at some point to outline their project and tech. So if you thinking about investing in a new coin or ICO (and to avoid scams) your first stop is reading the whitepaper.

What parts of a whitepaper do I need to check before investing in a cryptocurrency?
Although scam projects are getting better and better in not raising any suspicion, there are some sections of the whitepaper which you need to take a closer look at to filter out unreliable projects.

1 – Technology
The most important thing is the project’s proposed (technical) solution to a real and relevant problem. It makes no difference if it’s something new or a better application of existing tech, when the problem they’re trying to solve doesn’t need solving, there’s a big chance the project will fail or is set up to raise a quick buck. This is usually the most difficult to verify, but keep an eye out for common buzzwords that are solely used to confuse u without really explaining what the project is about.

2 – Team, Advisors & Partnerships
The people behind the project should be easy to verify. Check their Linkedin, online profiles, company profiles, any addresses you find, advisors, partnerships etc. Don’t be afraid to openly ask them if they’re involved in the project. Fitrova, a project that did an exit scam, boasted about great partnerships, but after checking with those partners they denied even knowing the CEO. Declouds, also a scam, wanted to prove his alleged partnership with a bank, by photoshopping himself into a picture of the board members of that bank. And finally I almost participated in an ICO with fake team members, but just in time the community found out that all the pictures where stolen from some Australian School Board website. So always doublecheck the information provided to you about the people behind the project and don’t forget to do a reverse image search on their pictures.

3 – Roadmap
Technical development always takes longer than promised, but a roadmap gives you an idea if they’re realistic about their goals. If the roadmap states that a mainnet will be delivered within a few months, that would be great, but could also indicate that they’re trying to make a quick buck (unless the started the development way before the ICO/STO/IEO of course).

4 – Token Allocation & Price
Things to look at are the amount of tokens they are going to bring out. It’s a difficult factor, but it might give you an idea if they’re realistic about the project or just want to make a lot of money. If their total token supply and pricing results in a really high marketcap, you should be suspicious about their intentions. Other thing to look at: Will the tokens be locked up (vesting) for team members? Will they burn unsold tokens? Can they bring out extra tokens whenever they decide to do so? Normally the best token allocation for investors is projects with a low token supply, so you get a bigger piece of the pie when you invest, but this strongly depends on the other factors.

5 – The Rest
There are so many things that could be red flags. Make sure to also verify the information on their websites and social media, does it look real or are they just using empty words, fake testimonials and social media bots. It wouldn’t be the first time that you are let to believe they already have a nice User Interface for their wallet, but in reality that are just stolen pictures from another project. Also beware of dubious statements, like stating they’re SEC-compliant or already have secured listing on big exchanges. Or things like saying their product can be used in any store or with every bank. Watch out for Ponzi Schemes like Bitconnect, with promised returns on investment for holding their coins. Sometimes they bloat with big whales who have invested already. Always check out the contribution address and try to trace back those big whales, to make sure it’s not the team contributing to itself faking that they already have landed investors.

Conclusion
In the end, you must feel safe about the project’s intent after reading the whitepaper. A lot of projects that turned out to be a scam had a legit whitepaper at first sight. But after looking closer into the promises they make in the document, how they’re going to build it and with whom they plan to make it a success, it should’ve been possible for investors to pick out the red flags. Of course there are many other factors that could lead to the conclusion that the project is a scam, but researching the whitepaper is one of the most accessible ways for you to verify it yourself.
Fortunately, www.allcryptowhitepapers.com has the largest whitepaper database in the world. With almost 1700 projects in our database, it’s the best place to start your research. Also don’t forget to check out the Whitepaper of the Week and News section, so you don’t miss out on anything. Knowledge is power!

The SEC also has made a great website to warn people about risky ICO’s and scams and they also included a whitepaper about their fake-scamproject, in which you will recognize many of the pointers I brought up in this article, You can check that out here:Howeycoin.