Altcoins Gain Ground as Analyst Sees Largest Bull Run in History
Analyst Matthew Hyland believes that the altcoin market may be approaching a turning point. According to his charts, smaller cryptocurrencies are gaining ground against Bitcoin and traditional risk assets.
Hyland noted that several key gauges had broken out of year-long downtrends. The Total 2 index, which tracks altcoins excluding Bitcoin, and the Total 3 index, which removes both BTC and Ethereum, had formed higher highs after a year-plus decline.
The OTHERS index, which excludes the top 10 cryptocurrencies, has also reached a significant level, with its market capitalization reaching $213 billion, up nearly 12% since September 1. This is in addition to increased trading activity, with altcoin perpetual futures open interest having overtaken Bitcoin's for the first time since December 2024.
However, Hyland also warned that rising leverage increases the odds of a painful correction. The shift in derivatives positioning has historically come right before corrections in mid-cap tokens. The Zcash (ZEC) perpetual futures open interest reached $2.7 billion per CoinGlass, while its move above $1,200 triggered $24 million in liquidations in the last 24 hours.