Bitcoin’s recent price movement feels like a serious test of the $70,000-level. After briefly rising near $74,000, it dropped quickly into the high $60,000s.
At the time of writing, it had recovered slightly and was trading at around $70,654 – Up about 3% in 24 hours. This suggested that buyers may be trying to turn $70K into a strong support level, instead of letting it break again.
However, there’s a bigger story beyond Bitcoin’s ups and downs. While BTC is moving sideways, attention may be slowly shifting towards altcoins. Simply put, the focus is no longer just on whether Bitcoin [BTC] will recover, it’s about whether its stability around $70K could trigger the next wave of growth in altcoins.
Analysts are rooting for altcoin season
For instance, an X account noted,Â
Altcoins will have the biggest breakout in the coming week.
Echoing similar sentiments, another analyst added,
Even though signs point to a possible altcoin season, current volatility is mainly driven by global tensions, not crypto issues. As Zach Humphries noted, the drop below $70,000 was a reflection of market fear from geopolitical uncertainty.
Interestingly, Bitcoin has still outperformed gold, silver, and stocks – A sign that it’s being seen as a hedge. Thus, while analysts are viewing the $65,000–$70,000 range as a value zone, they are being cautious, waiting for better entry points.Â
As Humphries added,Â
I think we’re still in the middle of this bear market.
On the contrary, analysts who are in favour of altcoins believe this cycle looks a lot like what happened in 2021.Â
Based on previous market trends, it may still be early in its accumulation phase – Only about 123 days in. This phase usually lasts around 240 days.
This means the market could still be in the building stage before a stronger upward move begins. If history repeats itself, we may soon move from sideways movement into steady growth, where major coins start breaking out.
Are on-chain metrics in favour?
Well, there’s a a contradiction traders need to watch closely.
Consider this – The Altcoin Season Index’s reading was 49, very close to signaling an altcoin rally.
However, at the same time, Bitcoin’s dominance has remained high, around 60%.
In simple terms, this means people are talking about altcoins and expecting them to rise. However, most of the money is still sitting in Bitcoin because investors see it as the safer option.
For a true altcoin season to begin, this needs to change. Until that happens, the market will be stuck in a waiting phase.Â
Additionally, across major networks like Ethereum [ETH], Solana [SOL], and Dogecoin [DOGE], activity levels have been either flat or falling. Ethereum did see a sudden jump in active users around 19 March, but it didn’t last long. This suggested that maybe, it was driven by short-term events.
Solana’s activity has been slowly declining too, with Dogecoin also seeing less interest from retail investors.
Overall, this implied that the excitement phase of the market was not backed by strong data. Not yet.Â
Additional bottlenecks in the upcoming altseason
Another issue is where the money is flowing. Even though people are talking about an altcoin season, most of the trading is still happening on a few big exchanges.
This means liquidity is concentrated in a few places, instead of being spread across the ecosystem.
One clear sign of this is the sharp drop in trading activity. Altcoin volume fell to about $26.5 billion, down from over $100 billion just a few days ago.
That’s a huge decline, showing that even though people are still positive online, most of the money is not actively moving. Simply put, the market has potential, but it’s missing a strong trigger to move higher.
Final Summary
- Bitcoin holding $70K shows strength, but it is still in a critical test phase rather than a confirmed breakout.
- Altcoin season signals are building, but real capital rotation has not started yet.