According to Andrey Grachev, managing partner of DWF Labs, a crypto market and investment firm, the traditional altcoin periods that featured broad market rallies called “altseasons” are now a thing of the past, as new crypto market dynamics have emerged.
Grachev told Cointelegraph that too many competing tokens competing for limited capital and liquidity, a small number of market participants and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) changing market dynamics by blocking liquidity are disruptive factors.
Institutional focus on large-cap digital assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and real-world assets (RWAs) is also driving capital and attention away from altcoins, he said.
“The long tail of tokens will still exist, but will mostly function as high-risk ventures or casino-style games. The capital will not expand fast enough to support it all,” Grachev said. He added:
“This means shorter story windows, more extreme swings, and less room for weak projects to survive on hype alone. The market is moving away from broad altcoin rallies and toward selective moves in specific sectors.”
Matt Hougan, chief investment officer at investment firm Bitwise, also said that traditional altcoin cycles are over and institutional investors are focusing on profitable digital assets or crypto assets that generate income.
related to: Bitcoin Leads, Altcoin Indicators Hit Interesting Lows: Seasonal Season Time?
The altcoin market cap has plummeted since the October 2025 market crash
According to CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost, 38% of altcoins are near all-time lows, which he said is worse than the post-FTX market crash.
“Liquidity is becoming less and less due to the increasing number of projects and tokens entering the market,” he told Cointelegraph.
More than $209 billion has left the altcoin market in the last 13 months. The altcoin market cap briefly peaked at $1.19 trillion in October 2025, before a market crash pushed it down to around $719 billion.
Meanwhile, inflows into Bitcoin ETFs remain strong, with five-day positive inflows remaining, while altcoin ETFs continue to see outflows, according to fund manager Farside Investors.
Magazine: Altcoin season 2025 is almost here… but the rules have changed
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