Altcoin Rally Falls Short of Altseason Criteria
The cryptocurrency market has seen a broad rally across various sectors, but experts are cautioning that this is not yet indicative of an altseason. According to CoinMarketCap's Altcoin Season Index, which measures how many eligible cryptocurrencies among the top 100 have outperformed Bitcoin during the previous 90 days, the current reading stands at 45. This means that 45% of the remaining group beat Bitcoin during the measured period.
The index does not classify the market as being in altcoin season until the share reaches 75%. While the recent rally has been impressive, with 31 out of 45 eligible assets among the largest 60 cryptocurrencies gaining more than 5% over 24 hours, this is still considered a short-term trend.
A Glassnode chart published on September 18 shows that altcoin futures positioning remains below its risk threshold. The indicator measures relative concentration across the tracked market, not leverage used by individual traders. It cannot show whether new futures positions are long or short, or whether spot buying is keeping pace.