How many cryptocurrencies are there by 2024? By 2024, the number of cryptocurrencies has exceeded 2.52 million, which is 5.7 times more than the 440,000 cryptocurrencies at the end of 2021. In September 2022, the number of cryptocurrencies exceeded one million for the first time, reaching 1.15 million by the end of the year, a year-on-year increase of 159.2%. By the end of 2023, the number of cryptocurrencies had grown by 72.3% compared to the previous year, reaching 1.98 million.
While this may reflect a trend towards more tokenization, it is worth noting that the total statistics include relatively short-lived meme coins and dead coins.
How many new tokens have been created so far? As of early April 2024, over 540,000 new cryptographic tokens have been created, averaging 5,300 new tokens issued per day this year. This is already more than half of the 830,000 new tokens launched last year, indicating that the number of on-chain new tokens in 2024 is expected to exceed that of 2023.
In contrast, the number of tokens issued in 2022 was relatively small, at 710,000. It is worth noting that the number of tokens issued seems to reflect the weak state of the cryptocurrency market in 2022, with a quarterly decline in the number of new tokens. Token creation activity remained suppressed in the first quarter of 2023 and then recovered to the level before the Terra/Luna crash.
It remains to be seen whether the absolute number of newly launched tokens will continue to grow gradually or exponentially on a year-on-year basis, especially as the cryptocurrency industry seeks to bring more real-world assets onto the chain.
The surge in new tokens during the Memecoin season. The Memecoin season in May 2023 led to a surge in the number of newly issued tokens, reaching a monthly historic high of 104,118. In late February this year, the Memecoin season returned, with the number of new tokens issued in March 2024 soaring to 195,735, setting a new record. This highlights the frenzy of meme coin activity as opportunistic participants launch derivatives of already popular meme coins or themes.
With the help of platforms like Pump.fun and cheaper on-chain transactions, future Memecoin seasons could lead to even higher peaks of new tokens.
In other words, there were also a large number of new tokens issued in January and February 2024, with 134,647 and 195,735 respectively. This may indicate that while the investment scope of meme coins is broader, on-chain speculative activity is still increasing.
Cryptocurrency quantity statistics per year (excluding 2024, as the year is not yet complete):
*Please note that the data for 2024 is incomplete as the year has not yet ended.
The number of new cryptographic tokens launched per month from January 1, 2023, to April 11, 2024:
*Please note that the data for April 2024 is incomplete as the month has not yet ended.