There is a popular myth among crypto investors: Find a cryptocurrency trading for mere pennies, invest just a few thousand bucks, and watch that modest up-front investment balloon into $1 million or more within a very short period of time.
With that in mind, two cryptocurrencies that are often positioned as potential millionaire-makers are XRP (XRP +5.75%) and Dogecoin (DOGE +4.90%). Both rank among the top 10 cryptocurrencies in the world by market cap, and both have seen brief periods of explosive upside gains during the past few years. But only one of them will potentially make you rich.
Utility coins vs. meme coins
Dogecoin is a meme coin, backed by nothing more than buzz, hype, and speculation. The coin itself was created as a joke more than a decade ago, and has no tangible value.
In contrast, XRP is a utility coin, backed by real-world use cases. XRP is commonly referred to as the banker's coin, given its use within the banking system. The primary use for XRP is as a bridge currency for cross-border payments. At least a dozen different banks and financial institutions use XRP blockchain technology to facilitate faster, cheaper, and easier cross-border payments.
CRYPTO: XRP
Key Data Points
Over the long haul, investors will be better served investing in utility coins rather than meme coins. The more use cases for a cryptocurrency, the higher its implied future value should be. So based on this criterion alone, the clear winner is XRP.
Future upside potential
Another key consideration is future upside potential. Put bluntly, which coin can soar higher and make you richer?
Image source: Getty Images.
Here, too, XRP appears to have the clear advantage. While the all-time high for XRP is a rather disappointing $3.84, it's easy to find price targets of $10 or higher. For example, earlier this year, Standard Chartered predicted that XRP would hit a price of $12.50 by the end of 2028.
By way of comparison, Dogecoin has never, ever traded higher than $0.74 -- and that was more than 4 1/2 years ago! Dogecoin is down a whopping 82% since then, and shows no signs of turning things around anytime soon. Even Elon Musk's creation of a new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) earlier this year did little or nothing to reverse investor sentiment around Dogecoin.
Invest in a best-in-class cryptocurrency
Part of Doegcoin's problem is that the meme coin market is saturated. There are literally thousands of different meme coins, and dozens of different dog-themed meme coins. Dogecoin, once unique, is now being drowned in a sea of copycat meme coins.
In contrast, XRP has relatively few direct competitors. Although every Layer-1 blockchain network is theoretically capable of sending cross-border payments quickly and cheaply, not all of them have been embraced by Wall Street or the mainstream banking community.
Ripple, the company behind the XRP coin, has invested in world-class technology and created the types of banking relationships that take years to develop. For that reason, XRP is clearly a best-in-class cryptocurrency with a very wide economic moat.
The winner is...
If forced to pick between these two bargain-priced cryptocurrencies, I'd pick XRP. There's more future upside potential, as well as peace of mind that comes from investing in a best-in-class cryptocurrency.
Of course, XRP is no slam-dunk investment by any means. It's now down 17% in 2025, and may take some time before it regains its former mojo. But if it does eventually recover, it could be exactly the type of asset that can deliver 10-fold returns during the next decade. If you invest enough up front and keep adding to your position over time, that might just be enough to make you rich.
