Altcoins Lag As Bitcoin Price Breaks $111,000: Why This Bull Market Is Different From 2021

Crypto firm Matrixport has delivered insights into why this bull market is different from the 2021 bull run. Their analysis sheds more light on why altcoins are lagging despite the Bitcoin price rally to a new all-time high (ATH) at $111,900. 

Why This Bull Market Is Different As Altcoins Lag Behind Bitcoin Price

In an X post, Matrixport stated that many traders are missing out on the current Bitcoin price rally as traditional retail engagement indicators remain low despite the rally to a new ATH. The firm explained that this rally is happening thanks to institutional investors, with retail investors on the sidelines in this bull market. 

Matrixport noted that this explains why funding rates remain subdued, retail activity is low, and many altcoins continue to lag as the Bitcoin price rallies in this bull market. The firm also revealed that retail traders make the fundamental mistake of not anticipating market corrections, leading to them occasionally closing their positions during sharp drawdowns. 

This bull market also differs from 2021 in that retail’s share of Bitcoin ownership is no longer expanding. Crypto whales have stepped in and are absorbing most of the flagship crypto’s supply, kicking retail investors to the curb. Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas once noted that this could explain why the Bitcoin price has held up well during major corrections. 

According to Matrixport, understanding how corporate demand influences the Bitcoin price behavior and how long this trend is likely to last is critical as the shift in this bull market progresses. Meanwhile, the absence of retail traders in this cycle explains why funding rates and trading volumes are relatively low, with altcoins lagging. 

The firm noted that market participants are witnessing a quiet transfer of Bitcoin from early adopters and investors, miners, and exchanges to corporations like Strategy and institutional investors like BlackRock. Matrixport again asserted that the current Bitcoin price rally is driven by spot market accumulation and not derivatives activity, which could explain why altcoins are lagging behind BTC. 

What Next For BTC And Altcoins

In an X post, crypto analyst Kevin Capital stated that the next important step is for the Bitcoin price to record a weekly close above $106,800 and then follow through or consolidate next week. He remarked that BTC is really the only thing that matters and urged market participants to take their eyes off altcoins. 

If the Bitcoin price fails to accomplish that goal, the analyst stated that market participants can then turn their attention to the reverse psychology 2021 fractals. It is worth mentioning that the analyst once predicted that altcoins led by Dogecoin will still have their run once BTC’s dominance cools off in the summer. 

At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is trading at around $108,258, down almost 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.