Altcoin Season Looms: Crypto Traders Smell Blood in the Water

Bitcoin’s boring sideways action has traders pivoting to altcoins—and the charts hint at a coming frenzy. Here’s why the smart money’s loading up on ETH, SOL, and even meme coins.

Signals flashing green: Historical cycle patterns show altcoins typically rally 6-8 months after Bitcoin halvings. With the 2024 halving in the rearview, the countdown’s begun. On-chain data reveals whales accumulating mid-cap tokens quietly since Q1.

The institutional factor: BlackRock’s Ethereum ETF approval shattered the ’BTC-only’ narrative. Now TradFi sharks are forced to play catch-up—watching helplessly as decentralized exchanges hit record volumes.

Risks remain: Not all alts will moon. Many will crater when the Fed inevitably flip-flops on rate cuts again. But for now? The dopamine rush of 100x leverage trades beats watching bankers fake enthusiasm over another 0.25% Treasury yield.

In brief

• Bitcoin dominance has reached 65%, its highest level since 2021, a threshold considered a major resistance by analysts.
• Ethereum surged 32% in one week, significantly outperforming Bitcoin.
• Quantitative easing measures in China played a catalytic role in this recent rally.
• Historically, Bitcoin dominance at 65% often precedes capital rotation towards altcoins.

Signals Announcing an Imminent Altcoins Season

Bitcoin dominance has continuously grown over the past three years, rising from 39% to nearly 65% today. This level represents a major technical resistance which, historically, has systematically preceded significant market reversals.

According to analyst Darky, this 65% threshold could mark the peak for Bitcoin dominance, signaling an imminent correction.

BTC dominance is about to drop sharply. Fill your bags with altcoins.

This analysis is reinforced by the identification of an ascending wedge pattern on the dominance chart, a chart pattern generally heralding a bearish reversal.

This technical outlook resonates with recent macroeconomic developments. Michael van de Poppe, a well-known trader and analyst, highlights China’s determining role in the current dynamic.

The Chinese central bank recently lowered its interest rates to a historic floor of 1.3%, while reducing the reserve requirements for commercial banks.

These quantitative easing measures injected significant liquidity into global financial markets, causing an appreciation of the yuan against the US dollar.

Moreover, according to Van de Poppe, this monetary relationship directly influences cryptocurrencies:

When the yuan appreciates, the US dollar weakens, which means a positive economic cycle and therefore strength in altcoin markets.

Diverging Expert Perspectives for the Coming Months

While some experts see these signals as the start of an explosive altseason, others remain more cautious.

Thomas Fahrer, co-founder of Apollo, points out that “this cycle is different, because when BlackRock and Saylor buy Bitcoin, they merely hold it and do not trade it against altcoins.”

Nic, co-founder of Coinbase, offers a more nuanced perspective. For him, a true altcoin season requires several conditions: bitcoin dominance below 54%, official monetary easing from the Fed, and Bitcoin stable at historic highs while capital flows into altcoins.

The Kaiko Research report also suggests that 2025 might favor targeted investments in certain altcoins rather than a generalized rally.

The first cryptos to benefit WOULD likely be the established “dinosaurs” such as Ethereum, XRP, Cardano, Chainlink, BNB, and Litecoin.

This convergence of technical, macroeconomic, and on-chain signals suggests that a major turning point is approaching for the crypto market. The historic resistance of Bitcoin dominance at 65% could well be the last bastion before a spectacular rebalancing in favor of altcoins.

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