Market analysts and traders in cryptocurrency are debating whether the altcoin season, which is essentially a period when the alternative cryptos outshine Bitcoin in performance, has wrapped up.
Traditionally, altcoin seasons have been marked by striking increases in the prices of non-Bitcoin cryptocurrencies. Between 2017 and 2018, the altcoin market experienced its fastest growth, underscored by the rise of coins like Ether.
A massive supply of altcoins, according to crypto analyst Ali Martinez, makes it improbable that a prolonged altseason will occur.
"According to data from Dune Analytics, there are more than 36.4 million altcoins now — a far cry from the fewer than 3,000 that were around during the 2017-2018 alt season and even less than 500 in the 2013-2014 period," Martinez shared on X. "Such a big supply has made huge changes to the market."
In this connection, Ripple has been criticized for advocating a multi-asset reserve with some saying, "It's Bitcoin reserve or nothing."
There is a surplus of tokens and many more are coming. The supply of tokens is greater than the demand. This is what Krüger said on X to illustrate how misguided the expectation is for an 'altseason' where all assets consistently rise over a prolonged period. He predicted that future alt seasons would be short, not exceeding "a few days to a few weeks."
He pointed out problems that investors face, saying the big mix of options makes it hard to look after their portfolios.
"Spotting nice coins to choose has turned tough. Picking good stocks is not easy either."
A crypto trader called Ash Crypto shared fears about the altcoin market losing its value, linking it to the growth of memecoins and low-quality tokens.
The market is oversaturated [...] exchanges are listing just mime coins to boost trading volume and expand their user base. Retail investors buy these memes, only to find themselves 80% down within a week, prompting an exit from the market," he said, in disapproval of the actions taken by crypto exchanges.
At the same time, Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, compared altcoins to Bitcoin saying that "only a selective number of altcoin projects with solid use cases and compelling stories will endure.
Since 2021, the market cap for Bitcoin has grown to $2.07 trillion, practically doubling its value. The total market cap for altcoins is at $1.6 trillion, about 15.8% less than its peak of $1.9 trillion during a fleeting rally in December 2024.
Some analysts think positively about altcoins, against the backdrop of interest from institutions which might push certain altcoins forward.
Michaël van de Poppe thinks some utility-based cryptos might catch the eye of big investors. He said, "I see real useful coins getting noticed as more institutions show interest." The same expert talked about Ethereum leading the next price rise. He called ETH "the most unloved rise of 2025."
