Investors and governments are growing increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of cryptocurrencies.
For example, both China and Kazakhstan have banned crypto mining as a result of the huge amounts of electricity required, which is mostly generated by fossil fuels.
As a result, investors are turning to more eco-friendly crypto coins which have skyrocketed in popularity and value over the past year.
So which low-carbon crypto coins performed the best in 2021 – and which of these eco coins are the most sustainable according to Co2 emissions and electricity consumption?
Cardano was found to be the eco coin with the highest value, reaching a market cap of more than $38 billion in 2021. The Cardano blockchain, like many other eco-friendly cryptocurrencies, operates on a proof-of-stake mechanism, a greener alternative to the power-hungry proof-of-work protocols used by Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Polkadot ranked second with a market cap of $29.8bn, while Ripple came in third, recording a market cap of $25bn last year.
Rank Eco coin 2021 market cap
1 Cardano $38bn
2 Polkadot $29.8bn
3 RIPPLE $25bn
4 Stellar $9bn
5 Filecoin $7.7bn
6 Terra $7.3bn
7 Solana $4.8bn
8 TRON $4.5bn
9 IOTA $3.95bn
10 EOSIO $3.9bn
Fantom is the coin emitting the least amount of Co2 – only 7 tons per year thanks to its super-fast transaction times and energy-efficient software. Fantom’s carbon emissions are negligible compared to crypto giant Bitcoin’s whopping 114 mega tonnes annually.
Rank Eco Coin Annual tons of Co2
1 Fantom 7
2 Terra 20
3 Stellar 37
4 Polkadot 50
5 Tezos 80
6 RIPPLE 300
7 Avalanche 340
8 Algorand 360
9 Cardano 400
10 Polygon 700
The research was carried out by Traders of Crypto.