Institutional Investors Hijack Altcoin Market, Shortening Rally Durations

The traditional relationship between Bitcoin and altcoins has been disrupted by institutional investors, who now dominate the market.

A recent Wintermute report revealed that in the first half of this year, institutional investors generated 72% of the total OTC spot flow across all cryptos handled by the platform.

This marks a significant increase from previous years, with the ratio previously at 61% in the second half of 2025 and 59% in the first half of the same year.

The report also found that institutional investors are highly selective in their token choices, with only 24% more unique tokens traded by institutions between H1 2024 and H1 2026, compared to a 76% rise among retail clients.