There’s no getting over the Bitcoin madness and with the recent news, it’s not soon to end.Between the news that Bitcoin’s value is holding above $1000 and Bank of America’s embrace of the digital currency, some of us are kicking ourselves for not investing earlier.But what if it wasn’t too late?Enter the world of cryptocurrency, where all the online currencies of the world battle to increase their value and legitimacy, of which Bitcoin is the top dog right now.By the way, digital currencies are called cryptocurrencies because they use principles of cryptography to generate units, basically solving hard math problems for online money- plus it sounds cool.Bitcoin isn’t the only digital currency; there are actually dozens of alternatives, or altcoins, many started this year, that seek to grow as large as Bitcoin.Here is the list of the next top five alternative currencies that could make you rich one day.Launched in 2011, Litecoin is basically like Bitcoin except that you can mine for Litecoins using consumer-grade computers to solve those “math problems”.

Transactions with Litecoins are four times faster than Bitcoin transactions and because they are scheduled to allow more coins in the market than Bitcoins, Litecoins may have a safer future.One Litecoin is currently worth around $40 according Crypto-Trade, an online currency trading platform, making it the solid No.bitcoin investigation cnbc2 of digital currencies behind Bitcoin.litecoin reward systemWith the third largest market cap of the crypto-currencies, Peercoin is known as the sustainable and environmentally friendly altcoin, if you can imagine that, because mining for Peercoins takes less power for computing than Bitcoins or Litecoins.bitcoin mining app ubuntuUnlike Bitcoin though, there can theoretically be an infinite amount of Peercoins that can be mined.bitcoin mbtc

One Peercoin currently goes for around $6  according to CoinMarketCap.Namecoin is just like Bitcoin in that only 21 million Namecoins will be produced for circulation, making it scarce and valuable.Namecoin is also a platform that allows for the creation of uncensored internet domains, basically creating it’s own internet, something not so great for governments but good for Silk Road-type folk.litecoin wiki poolsHolding with the fourth highest market cap, one Namecoin currently goes for around $10.ensayo sobre bitcoinAccording to an article on Heavy, Protoshares are the next altcoin worth mentioning after Namecoin.Protoshares represent shares in future Invictus Innovation Incorporated’s cryptocurrencies and digital creations, to which the company is reported to have a firm understanding and grasp of cryptocurrency platforms.So you are basically getting future shares of their company, but everything else about Protoshares is wildly confusing except for the part that it isn’t another copy of Bitcoin like the above cryptos.

One Protoshare is currently worth about $28 according to CoinMarketCap.Ripple is worth a mention here not only because it is very different from the other altcoins that have basically stemmed off Bitcoin, but because big names have also taken notice.While explaining exactly what it is would be confusing to say the least, this alternative currency has attracted millions in venture capital from firms like Google Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture, and The Bitcoin Opportunity Fund, according to an article on Motherboard.Detailed as an exchange platform that complements other virtual and fiat currencies, one Ripple unit is currently worth about 5 cents with a market cap at just over 5.5 trillion dollars.Get it while it’s hot!Neil Murray is an entrepreneur and writer involved in the Nordic and European startup scene.He runs The Nordic Web, a content and data provider, alongside VIP VoIP, an event series which connects local startup ecosystems with global tech players.Here, he discusses the perks of bitcoin as both a marketing tool and a cheaper transaction method.

This week, Latvia’s national airline, airBaltic, confirmed that it is now accepting bitcoin, and that in doing so, it became the first airline that accepts bitcoin directly, rather than through a third party.Indeed, it's true - we have become the world’s 1st airline to accept @Bitcoin as payment for flights when booking at http://t.co/7Bh1qCedds — airBaltic (@airBaltic) July 22, 2014 This is a positive move for those that want bitcoin to evolve into a mainstream currency that can be used for the purchase of everyday goods and utilities, and it could lead competitors to also offer a bitcoin payment option.The immediate knock-on effect could be that Expedia will start accepting bitcoin for flight bookings, in addition to hotel bookings that you can already make with the cryptocurrency.By becoming the first airline to accept bitcoin, airBaltic has surely stolen a march on everybody else.However, the firm has missed a trick.The dreaded transaction fee.Yes, even when booking a flight with bitcoin, the transaction fee is €5.99.

"The transaction fee is to cover the costs associated with processing and handling the booking rather than the bitcoin itself."Yet, a processing and handling fee typically is meant to cover costs from processing the payment.So, where in this case there is practically none, it is not clear why this expense still applies.Surely, the handling of the booking itself would already be accounted for in its salaries and expenses, as this is the main purpose and reason for the business's existence, so it would seem pretty odd not to have this factored into its costs already.There is no transaction fee when using an airBaltic card, for example, which demonstrates that the main purpose of these fees are deterrents, aimed to encourage customers to avoid other payment methods and to take advantage of the benefits of being an airBaltic cardholder.Having broken ground in becoming the first airline to accept bitcoin, it makes no sense to essentially deter people from using it.Otherwise it is no more than a publicity stunt, which to be fair to them has done the airline pretty well so far already, with the bitcoin community buzzing about this news.