Has Altcoin Season Arrived? VanEck Answers as Bitcoin Struggles Below $100,000

The recent price action of Bitcoin has been marked by a correction from its all-time high of $108,135 reached just a week ago. While Bitcoin mostly held above $90,000, this correction has seen the cryptocurrency drop to as low as $92,500 in the past 24 hours. This decline has not only shaken confidence in Bitcoin's near-term trajectory but also shifted attention to the altcoin market. Although the altcoin market also reflects the trend of Bitcoin price correction, many investors and analysts expect altcoins to rise soon. VanEck has considered this expectation with a confident statement on social media platform X. According to the investment company, the cryptocurrency industry is currently in the altcoin season starting from November 27th. Altcoin season is here—VanEck Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, has struggled to maintain its price momentum above $100,000, raising questions about the market's next direction. While many Bitcoin supporters are expecting a new price surge in 2025 with the upcoming Trump administration in the United States, other cryptocurrency analysts are shifting towards the altcoin market. Interestingly, analysts at VanEck believe that the current cryptocurrency environment may favor altcoins over Bitcoin. Matthew Sigel, Director of Digital Research at VanEck, further explained this phenomenon, explaining that Bitcoin's dominance in market capitalization, liquidity, and volume sets the foundation for altcoins to perform better. According to Sigel, when capital flows into the market, the acceptance of risk tends to drive the emergence of new cryptocurrency applications, especially in decentralized finance, gaming, and NFTs, thereby enabling the altcoin market to outperform Bitcoin. VanEck's outlook on the altcoin season also emphasizes data from Artemis's Altcoin Season Index, which measures how many of the top 50 altcoins outperform Bitcoin over a 90-day period. According to this index, ranging from 0 to 1, the altcoin season begins with a reading of 0.6. At the time of writing, the index is currently much higher than this level, recently reaching 0.8. This indicates that the cryptocurrency industry is currently in the altcoin season, where profits obtained from Bitcoin will begin to flow into the top altcoins.

Different perspectives on current data The interesting thing is that Artemis's Altcoin Season Index differs from more conventional figures, such as those provided by CoinMarketCap. CoinMarketCap defines altcoin season as the period when 75% of the top 100 altcoins outperform Bitcoin over the past 90 days. By this measure, the index is currently at 51, although it peaked at an impressive 87 on December 4th. However, many market participants are awaiting an altcoin season, with many betting on the superior performance of many top altcoins compared to Bitcoin. According to a recent technical analysis by cryptocurrency analyst Captain Faibik, the altcoin season has officially begun.