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The debate between Bitcoin (BTC 0.31%) and Ethereum (ETH 0.21%) as a better investment has been a hot topic in the cryptocurrency community for years. Both are popular and established cryptocurrencies, but there are key differences between them that make Bitcoin a better investment. The reason for this belief can be boiled down to three simple reasons.

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Market capitalization, or "market cap," refers to the total value of a company or asset. In the case of cryptocurrencies, it is calculated by multiplying the total number of coins in circulation by the current market price of each coin. As of April 1, 2023, Bitcoin has a market cap of over $545 billion, while Ethereum's market cap is just under $220 billion.

Essentially what this means is that Bitcoin is currently a more established asset than Ethereum and makes up a disproportionate amount of value in the entire crypto asset class. As of today, Bitcoin accounts for more than 45% of all the value in crypto.

Its higher market cap indicates that it has more adoption and more trust among investors. Additionally, it suggests that Bitcoin is less volatile than Ethereum, as it would take a larger amount of money to move its price significantly.

One of the most significant differences between Bitcoin and Ethereum is their supply. Bitcoin has a hard cap of 21 million coins, which means that there will never be more than 21 million bitcoins in circulation. Currently, there are around 19.3 million circulating, with the remaining 1.7 million yet to be mined. Even better, though, these remaining 1.7 million bitcoins will be released at a diminishing rate for the next 117 years until the last bitcoin is mined.

Currently, Bitcoin's inflation rate is a minimal 1.7%. However, due to the gradual decrease in the rate of new coins being created, it is estimated that by 2056, this number will fall below 0.1%. By the year 2100, Bitcoin's inflation rate will be somewhere around 0.000001%. No matter the asset, an inflation rate this low helps to ensure that prices are not only maintained but grow as demand competes for a more limited supply.

Ethereum, on the other hand, has no hard cap. While it does have a mechanism known as burning to remove ether from circulation, there is, technically, no overall limit on the number of ether which could enter the market. Unlike Bitcoin, this means that Ethereum is subject to unknown levels of inflation, which can decrease the value of each individual coin over time.

Furthermore, Bitcoin has a stronger track record when it comes to security and decentralization. Bitcoin's blockchain is the most secure and decentralized of any cryptocurrency, with thousands of nodes and miners around the world helping to verify transactions and maintain the network. This makes it less susceptible to hacking or manipulation than Ethereum, which has had several high-profile security incidents in the past. Additionally, Bitcoin's decentralized nature means that it is not subject to the same level of centralization or regulation as Ethereum, which has been criticized for being too closely tied to its founders and developers.

In addition, Bitcoin has a more established and secure network than Ethereum. Bitcoin's network has been operating securely for well over a decade, and its underlying proof-of-work technology has proven to be reliable and resistant to attacks. Ethereum, on the other hand, has had some security issues in the past, including a major hack in 2016 that resulted in the loss of millions of dollars worth of ether. While Ethereum's security has improved over time, it still lags behind Bitcoin in terms of reliability and security.

While Ethereum might be deserving of a spot in your portfolio, Bitcoin provides investors with a safer and more dependable option. Likely the greatest advantage Bitcoin has over Ethereum is its simplicity. Bitcoin's value proposition is clear and easy to understand: it is a highly decentralized and secure digital store of value that provides holders with reliability.

Ethereum, on the other hand, has a more complex value proposition that is tied to its smart contract functionality and decentralized applications. While this complexity can be appealing to some investors, it also makes Ethereum more difficult to understand and evaluate as an investment, as many of these use cases are in their beginning stages.

For investors looking to keep it simple and wanting to invest in cryptocurrency, look no further than the original digital asset, Bitcoin.

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What's a Better Buy: Bitcoin or Ethereum? - The Motley Fool