Altcoin News: CryptoQuant CEO Declares Altcoin Season Has Begun, Driven by Stablecoin Holders

The next altcoin season has officially begun, but unlike past cycles, this one is not fueled by Bitcoin-to-altcoin rotations—it’s being driven by stablecoin holders, according to Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant.In a Feb. 20 post on X, Young Ju noted that altcoin trading volume is now 2.7 times higher than Bitcoin's, signaling a shift in market dynamics. Historically, altseasons occurred when traders took profits from Bitcoin and reinvested in altcoins. However, this cycle is different.Stablecoins Fueling the Altcoin RallyInstead of Bitcoin dominance declining—traditionally a sign of an altseason—stablecoin capital is flowing into select altcoins, according to CryptoQuant’s analysis. This shift follows a sharp increase in stablecoin market capitalization, which surged after Donald Trump’s U.S. election victory. As of Feb. 21, total stablecoin market cap stands at $232 billion, per CoinGecko.However, this altseason is highly selective, Young Ju warned. Not all altcoins are rallying, and liquidity remains limited, with some networks, such as Solana, experiencing investor outflows due to rug pulls and insider schemes in the memecoin sector.Bitcoin's Institutional Adoption Alters Market TrendsMeanwhile, Bitcoin is increasingly decoupling from the broader crypto market due to institutional adoption. U.S. Bitcoin ETFs now hold over $100 billion worth of BTC, and public companies have accumulated more than $60 billion in Bitcoin as an inflation hedge, according to BitcoinTreasuries.NET.Young Ju previously highlighted that Bitcoin has effectively built its own "paper-based Layer 2 ecosystem" through ETFs, funds, and corporate treasury holdings, reducing its correlation to altcoins.As a result, only a handful of altcoins are attracting new liquidity and establishing independent price trends, marking a new era for altcoin market cycles, according to Cointelegraph.