Rich by Coin

While there are millions of cryptocurrencies, it’s a top-heavy market that’s dominated by Bitcoin. Bitcoin has been the largest cryptocurrency from the beginning, and its $1.7 trillion market cap makes up nearly 60% of the entire crypto market (as of Dec. 18). One of Bitcoin’s key features is a hard cap of 21 million coins. This built-in scarcity has helped turn it into a digital store of value used by individuals, companies, and institutional investors.

Shiba Inu has a maximum supply, as well — but of nearly 590 trillion SHIB tokens, not what anyone would consider scarce. It also hasn’t been a reliable source of value. Shiba Inu’s price skyrocketed in 2021, but since then, it has lost over 90% of its value. Bitcoin is highly volatile, but it has been the most resilient cryptocurrency, recovering from every bear market.

Although Bitcoin experienced an extended downturn starting in 2021, it rebounded and set new all-time highs in 2024 and 2025. If you’re going to invest in cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is worth having in your portfolio, considering how important it is to the market. Bitcoin leads the crypto market and is a digital store of value for individuals, corporations, and institutional investors. Bitcoin remains the largest cryptocurrency by a wide margin.

Its market cap sits near $1.7 trillion, accounting for roughly 60% of the entire crypto market as of December 18. A defining feature is its fixed supply cap of 21 million coins, which creates built-in scarcity and reinforces Bitcoin’s role as a digital store of value. In contrast, Shiba Inu has a maximum supply as well—nearly 590 trillion SHIB tokens—but such magnitude does not translate to scarcity. SHIB’s price surged in 2021 but has fallen by more than 90% since then, highlighting a weaker value proposition relative to Bitcoin.

Bitcoin, while volatile, has proven the most resilient, recovering from every bear market and rebounding to new all-time highs in 2024 and 2025. For investors, including Bitcoin in a crypto portfolio makes sense given its market leadership and systemic importance. Bitcoin continues to lead the market and serves as a digital store of value for individuals, corporations, and institutional investors.