Launched as a hard fork of Bitcoin (BTC) in 2011 by computer scientist Charlie Lee, Litecoin is generally considered to be the first successful altcoin and has consistently ranked among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap. Although Litecoin was originally based on the Bitcoin codebase, there are some key differences – such as faster transaction times, an arguably more efficient hashing algorithm, and 4x the max supply. These, along with other factors, contribute to a completely different valuation than Bitcoin.

There have been some interesting moments in Litecoin’s long price history, and if you want to understand more about its movements, you’re in the right place. We’ve compiled everything you need to know about the past price action of Litecoin – and the various factors that influence it.

Litecoin Price History

When [guidelink ltc] was first introduced in 2011, two years after Bitcoin, it quickly gained a following and reached a price-per-coin of $0.30. By the middle of November 2013, Litecoin price had climbed up over $4, and then in the space of less than a fortnight, it shot up more than 1,000% to peak at around $50. This was followed, however, by a similarly sudden crash back down to below $10 and the previous high wouldn’t be revisited for some years.

After more than three years of mostly sideways and downwards movement, seeing prices dip as low as $1.30, Litecoin began to grow steadily in the spring of 2017. By December of that year, Litecoin had eclipsed its previous high by creeping up to $100, and then, over a couple of weeks, it shot up another 240% to set a new all-time high around $340.

This was once more followed by a decline, though not as sudden as the last one, dragging on until the price of Litecoin dropped below $25. There was a resurgence in the first half of 2019, but it didn’t yet have the momentum to break through $150 again. By the start of November 2020, Litecoin was trading at around $55, at which point the price began climbing again and reached $240 in 2021.

Throughout its relatively long history, Litecoin has managed to remain one of the ten largest cryptocurrencies by market cap, and during the late 2017 surge, it reached its highest market cap of more than $18.5 billion.

Analyzing Litecoin Price History

Litecoin’s first major surge at the end of 2013 came hot on the heels of Bitcoin’s 2013 bull run, which no doubt drove the Litecoin rally. Earlier in the same year, Litecoin creator Charlie Lee was recruited by popular cryptocurrency platform Coinbase. This may have increased general awareness and confidence in Litecoin (LTC) and contributed to its rally later that year.

Such a sharp incline is very difficult to sustain; the subsequent crash wasn’t unexpected, but the destabilizing effect caused by the bankruptcy of the Mt. Gox crypto exchange likely made it more difficult for Litecoin to recover.

May of 2017 brought exciting innovation for Litecoin – it became the first of the top 5 cryptocurrencies by market cap to adopt SegWit (Segregated Witness), a Bitcoin protocol upgrade that improves scalability. Later that same month, Litecoin facilitated the first-ever transaction on a Layer-2 payment protocol – the Lightning Network – when 0.00000001 LTC was sent across the globe in a fraction of a second.

Also in May 2017, Litecoin finally received a Coinbase listing. With all of these developments happening, it’s not surprising that Litecoin made gains all throughout 2017 – and when the next Bitcoin bull run came at the end of the year, the price of Litecoin launched even higher.

2019 brought wider adoption and new partnerships for Litecoin. Payments network Flexa added support for the cryptocurrency in July, which meant more than 39,000 merchants could immediately start accepting Litecoin for a variety of goods and services. This likely contributed to the increased and sustained trading volume that Litecoin has experienced since 2019. There were also major sponsorship deals with UFC and the Miami Dolphins which led to even greater public awareness of the project.

Litecoin’s most recent big surge at the end of 2020 and into 2021 has been in line with larger crypto market and has gained momentum from Bitcoin’s latest bull run.

Factors Influencing The Price of Litecoin (LTC)

A variety of different factors affect the price of Litecoin. It has a fixed max supply, so it is not subject to inflation and debasement like fiat (and some crypto) currencies.

Like Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC) is also subject to halving events. Halving events happen at predetermined block heights and cause the amount of LTC awarded to miners for each block they mine to be cut in half. This happens roughly every four years and means that the available supply of cryptocurrency becomes scarcer over time. As demand increases, Litecoin can be used as a hedge against currency inflation as its price is bound to go up and there is a maximum supply that can ever be mined. It’s difficult to guarantee an increase in price immediately following or preceding a halving event – but in the case of Bitcoin (BTC), past halvings have been followed by a period of sustained overall growth.

Unsurprisingly, the price of Litecoin is also influenced by project news and updates from developers. For example, as of March 2021, Litecoin is in the process of implementing the MimbleWimble protocol which will add opt-in privacy features to the blockchain and could therefore attract an entirely new demographic of privacy-minded users.

Awareness and adoption also seem to be driving forces on the price of Litecoin. Future sponsorship deals would increase Litecoin’s exposure – and if the cryptocurrency continues to add more merchants to the Litecoin network, it will probably experience a growth in the volume of transactions.

Ultimately, the price of Litecoin is decided by the balance of supply and demand in the market, which is influenced by all of these factors – as well as the sentiment around Litecoin, other cryptocurrencies, and the wider economy.

Live Litecoin – Value and Market Cap

The live price of Litecoin (LTC) varies from moment to moment, as it’s dictated by the balance of buyers and sellers on exchanges – which is in constant flux. 

Given Litecoin’s volatility, its live price can change by a large amount in a very short space of time. The market cap of Litecoin (LTC) is equal to the current market price of Litecoin multiplied by the number of LTC in circulation.

Litecoin Price FAQ

How is the price of Litecoin calculated?

Litecoin’s price at any given time is decided by the balance of supply and demand on exchanges. When more people are buying Litecoin than selling it, the price goes up, and when more are selling than buying, the price goes down.

Why is the price of Litecoin different on different cryptocurrency exchanges?

Litecoin’s price is based purely on trading as there is no standard global Litecoin price, so no one knows what it is “supposed” to cost. The trading volume and liquidity are different for each exchange and those differences are what affects the price.

When will the next halving happen?

The most recent halving occurred on 5 August 2019 and the next one is expected to happen on 5 August 2023, when the block reward will be reduced from 12.5 LTC per block to 6.25 LTC.

When will the max supply be reached?

The number of LTC mined per block will continue to drop by half, roughly every four years, until a total of 84 million LTC has been mined. This is expected to happen sometime around 2144.

What will Litecoin be worth in the future?

It’s impossible to make completely, undeniably accurate price predictions with any kind of certainty – as a whole host of different things could impact future price movements. These include both Litecoin-related events such as updates and halvings and broader crypto occurrences like changes to regulation. 

It would appear that if Litecoin continues to add more merchants to the Litecoin network and expand its reach globally, its price could absolutely increase to new levels over time.

Conclusion

The price of Litecoin (LTC) has been on an exciting journey in its long crypto history, from being worth $0.30 in 2011 to reach an impressive $340 at the end of 2017. Though it hasn’t managed to reach that high of a price since Litecoin continues to innovate and expand its reach. The inherent volatility of the cryptocurrency market means that surges and crashes are just par for the course.

The history of LTC price has had many different influences, including protocol upgrades, exchange listings, and movements in the wider crypto market. Its current valuation is derived from the balance of supply and demand in the markets and constantly changes.

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