Ethereum Classic is the original protocol of Ethereum. As a result of the massive hack on the Ethereum-based DAO, in which around 14% of all ETH in circulation were stolen, a hard fork was proposed to return the stolen funds to their owners. This caused an ideological split revolving around the question of changing previous transactions in the blockchain. Some Ethereum holders rejected the hard fork, and decided to keep using the original protocol, based on the principle that the blockchain is immutable, and cannot be changed.

ICON (ICX) is unique compared to most other digital currrencies. ICON's primary objective is to establish a unifying system to integrate an unlimited numbers of blockchains. This would allow numerous blockchains to work together and incorporate aspects of all of them. ICON is powered by a unique system called loopchain, that can adopt different features, rules, and consensus systems. The loopchain has different circles, with nodes that connect it. There are community nodes and individual nodes that are all connected to the ICON Republic, which is the entire ecosystem. These nodes can connect in countless ways and results in unlimited applications. The network has an innovative consensus mechanism called Delegated Proof-of-Contribution (DPoC).

BitcoinDark is a fork of Bitcoin with a poorly defined purpose and use case. BitcoinDark is based on the InstantDEX protocol, a decentralized exchange for BitcoinDark and other cryptocurrencies supported by the project. The platform is also supposed to include a Pegged Asset Exchange (PAX) to allow users to buy and sell pegged assets – including fiat currencies, commodities, ETFs, and stocks.
BitcoinDark is a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) currency that has gained a significant market cap, but the project has failed to show how its vision will be implemented or how it will add value compared to other blockchain projects.