Recently, I’ve been thinking about a question: how should I choose cryptocurrency investments in 2026? This topic is actually quite worth discussing, especially during times of such market volatility.

Let’s start with some basic logic. Strategies in a bull market and a bear market are completely different. I’ve heard the phrase countless times: "Buy altcoins in a bull market, buy mainstream coins in a bear market." The reasoning behind this is simple—altcoins tend to surge easily during a bull market, but the bear market is a trap; conversely, mainstream coins may not rise as sharply, but they have strong resilience and are less likely to go to zero. So when choosing coins, the first thing to look at is how the overall market is doing—this is the most critical.

Speaking of mainstream coins, their current market cap rankings do reflect market consensus. Bitcoin remains the absolute leader, with a circulating market cap of around $1.5 trillion, holding over 57% of the market share. This position is almost unshakable. Why? Because it was the earliest to emerge, has survived all kinds of storms, and has the highest consensus and scarcity. Ethereum ranks second, with a market cap close to $260 billion. Its advantage lies in a complete ecosystem, with smart contract functionality attracting developers en masse and a wide range of application scenarios. These two coins are indeed the top choices for long-term cryptocurrency investments.

Let’s talk about stablecoins separately. USDT’s market cap is approaching $190 billion, basically serving as a lubricant for trading, with very little volatility. It’s suitable for cash reserves, but don’t expect to make money from it. USDC, although also a stablecoin, is much smaller in scale and has previously experienced de-pegging risks, so it’s less robust than USDT.

Among other mainstream coins, BNB has been performing well. Its price is around $644, with a market cap over $86 billion. Why am I optimistic about it? Because it’s backed by the world’s largest exchange, which provides strong support. Solana’s story over the past two years is also quite interesting. Despite being hit by the FTX incident, it has focused on optimization, now processing up to 65k transactions per second—far surpassing Ethereum’s 15-30 transactions—and transaction fees are much cheaper. With the MEME coin craze, SOL has become a top choice for many.

Ripple (XRP), Cardano (ADA), and others mainly aim to solve payment issues, following a different route. XRP is now priced at $1.37, with a market cap close to $85 billion, and has many applications in enterprise payments. Dogecoin, initially a joke, has maintained popularity thanks to support from well-known figures.

Regarding investment strategies, my personal experience is like this: long-term investing is more friendly to beginners. It doesn’t require watching the market constantly, frequent operations, or high transaction fees. Short-term trading theoretically offers higher returns, but in reality, most people buy high and sell low—I learned this the hard way in 2018. Back then, I bought Bitcoin at $5,000, sold at $7,000, only to see it surge to $12,000 afterward, and I was kicking myself. So, for most people, the best long-term crypto investment strategy is to pick good coins and HODL.

How to buy? Usually, you start by registering an account on a large centralized exchange, buy stablecoins with fiat currency, then exchange stablecoins for your desired coins. BTC and ETH are a bit special—some platforms support direct fiat-to-crypto purchases. If you don’t want to operate frequently, you can also transfer your coins to a wallet, which helps resist the temptation of frequent trading. My suggestion is to split your funds into two parts: one for long-term holding, one for short-term trading, kept in different accounts. This makes it psychologically easier.

Finally, I want to say that although the top ten coins by market cap are relatively safer choices, that doesn’t mean they are perfect. Every coin has risks, and the key is to choose based on your risk tolerance and investment goals. Conservative investors should stick to BTC and ETH, the most well-known with the lowest risks. If you understand the market well, you can allocate some other mainstream coins. As for small coins and MEME coins, their volatility is too high, and I don’t recommend beginners to touch them.

Most importantly, don’t be fooled by the illusion of low-priced coins. Many beginners see a coin costing just a few cents and imagine it will skyrocket to a dollar, making them rich overnight. But most of these coins end up going to zero. I’ve seen too many people lose all their capital chasing that dream. So, investing should be rational—choosing coins with solid fundamentals is the best way to achieve long-term success in crypto.