DEXTools Logo / Source: DEXTools TwitterBlue chip cryptocurrency markets rose on Thursday, with Bitcoin moving back above $26,500 for the first time this month and threatening a break above a downtrend that had been in play since early August.

Ether (ETH), XRP (XRP) and Cardano (ADA) were all last up around 1-2% in the last 24 hours.

No specific news or fundamental catalyst has been attributed to the rise in blue chip prices.

Strong US Retail Sales data is the latest sign the US economy remains far from recession, which is a positive on the one hand, but also strengthens the case for “higher for longer” interest rates in the US, as the Fed will likely see it.

Net net, US economic data appears to have had no impact on crypto prices on Thursday, while traders might also have continued unwinding pessimism that was priced in earlier in the week amid concerns about major asset sales from failed crypto exchange FTX.

Whilst the market was up on Thursday, major cryptos are still locked within recent multi-month ranges and the prospect of big near-term gains remains slim.

Traders thus continue to turn to highly volatile and illiquid shitcoin/meme coin markets for a better chance of quick exponential gains.

Here are some of the best-performing low market cap coins on Thursday, as per DEXTools.

EmotiCoin ($EMOTI)

A shitcoin called EmotiCoin ($EMOTI), which claims to be the first “elastic supply token” that reduces its supply by 20% every 4 hours, continues to rise in price.

Continued price pumps have been able to attract lots of investors, with the token’s market cap having now been pushed higher to around $3.6 million, with 1,600 holders.

The token has over $225,000 in locked liquidity and only four s as per DEXTool’s security audit.

These include a 5% buy and sell tax, which will disappear after 14 days, according to EmotiCoin’s website.

The token probably isn’t a scam, but its failure to garner much traction means shitcoin investors should exercise caution.

Jinbe Knight of the Sea ($JINBE)

A new shitcoin called Jinbe Knight of the Sea ($JINBE) is pumping since its launch on Thursday.

$JINBE has already pumped nearly 400% from its DEX launch price, reaching a market cap of nearly $200,000, over 100 holders, and liquidity of more than $150,000.

DEXTools’ security audit only reveals 1 token contract , but the fact that liquidity isn’t locked means that the token could be a rug pull, so traders should exercise great caution when investing.

Monkey ($MONKEY)

After a slow start to life since its launch earlier this month, a shitcoin called Monkey $MONKEY has seen an explosive move higher on Thursday, rallying an impressive more than 150% to hit a market cap of close to $400,000.

Monkey has $80,000 in locked liquidity, which should ease concerns of a potential rug pull, and has been able to accumulate over 300 holders.

However, DEXTool’s security audit has revealed eight concerning aspects to the token’s contract, including a 5% buy and sell tax and lots of unfair powers that the token’s issuer has to modify taxes and affect trading conditions.

$MONKEY could well be a scam coin, so traders should be very careful when investing.

Crypto Alternatives to Consider

Shitcoins are very risky, given most have no real value proposition.

For those looking for an even better probability of near-term gains, an alternative high-risk-high-reward investment strategy to consider is getting involved in crypto presales.

This is where investors buy the tokens of up-start crypto projects to help fund their development.

These tokens are nearly always sold very cheap and there is a long history of presales delivering huge exponential gains to early investors.

Many of these projects have fantastic teams behind them and a great vision to deliver a revolutionary crypto application/platform.

If an investor can identify such projects, the risk/reward of their presale investment is very good.

The team at Cryptonews spends a lot of time combing through presale projects to help investors out.

Here is a list of 15 of what the project deems as the best crypto presales of 2023.

See the 15 Cryptocurrencies

Disclaimer: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice. You could lose all of your capital.