Altcoins could be in for more pain before any gains, according to a crypto trader who predicted that a final “altcoin reckoning” may occur.
“It looks like the grand finale of the altcoin reckoning has finally arrived,” said ITC Crypto founder Benjamin Cowen in a post on X on Nov. 4.
He added that the reckoning should be over by December or the second week of January 2025 at the latest. “It has been a long journey, and many gave up along the way, but this process was always going to play out,” he said.
The prediction is based on a final flush-out for altcoin markets, which occurred during the bear market of 2019. The altcoin market capitalization chart is currently showing a similar pattern.
Altcoins gradually recovered in 2020 before surging to fresh highs in 2021. According to the analyst, this scenario is likely to play out in 2025.
Source: Benjamin Cowen
In a separate post on X, he said that altcoin/Bitcoin pairs have continued to bleed for three years straight, adding that the last two “altseasons” occurred in post-halving years 2017 and 2021.
Trader “ardizor” predicted something similar in a Nov. 4 post, saying that the altseason patterns from 2017 and 2021 are “happening again after three years.”
Meanwhile, crypto investor “Sensei” told his 60,000 X followers that “the biggest altseason ever will start in less than 10 days.”
Related: Is crypto ‘altseason’ coming? Watch these 3 key signals in the months ahead
Bitcoin’s (BTC) market dominance is currently at its highest level since March 2021 at 60.5%, according to TradingView. It is unlikely that there will be any significant movements for altcoins until BTC’s market share falls back below 50%.
Bitcoin dominance over the past four years. Source: TradingView
Crypto markets retreated over the weekend as total capitalization fell to $2.4 trillion by Monday, Nov. 4.
The brunt of those losses was borne by altcoins, with Ether (ETH) and Solana (SOL) dropping 11% since their Oct. 30 highs. BNB (BNB) has lost 8%, while Bitcoin has only dipped 5.8% since it topped $73,000 late last month as it continues to dominate crypto markets.
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