Bitcoin
Bitcoin was the world’s first cryptocurrency and decentralized digital currency. The first bitcoin transaction occurred in early 2009 and has since grown worldwide to a mainstream financial asset. It is often considered volatile, as seen in our first chart, but one can argue that it is also resilient. Learn more about some bitcoin basics for new investors.
Bitcoin’s closing price sank over 15% this week to its lowest level since November 2024. BTC is down ~14% year-to-date and is sitting ~39% below its record close from October 2025.
Ether
Ether is a cryptocurrency run on the Ethereum blockchain platform and was launched in July 2015. It has the second largest market share, despite being the newest of the three discussed in this article.
Ether’s closing price dropped over 25% this week, hitting its lowest level since May of last year. ETH is currently down ~25% year-to-date and is ~54% below its record close from August 2025.
XRP
XRP, which is owned by Ripple, was launched in 2012 and was one of the larger cryptocurrencies for some time until new coins joined the market.
Bitcoin vs. Ether vs. XRP
An index has been created in order to chart these three cryptocurrencies together, considering their significantly different pricing histories. A logarithmic scale is used on the y-axis of this chart to better illustrate the relative percentage changes and long-term growth of these cryptocurrencies, as opposed to their absolute price fluctuations. The chart tells us which cryptocurrency’s price has changed the most since November 9, 2017. At one point or another, all three have been at the top. At the time of writing, bitcoin is in the lead.
On January 10th, 2024, the SEC approved spot bitcoin ETFs from a range of issuers such as Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC), iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), Coinshares Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund (BRRR). Here are some of the quick takeaways from the spot bitcoin ETF launch.
On July 23rd, 2024, a handful of spot ether ETFs launched from a range of issuers such as Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), Franklin Ethereum ETF (EZET), Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW), iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), Fidelity Ethereum ETF (FETH). Here’s what investors need to know.