Major Altcoins Outperform Bitcoin

Major altcoins are outperforming Bitcoin across both weekly and monthly metrics, showing greater stability despite Bitcoin’s recent volatility. After reaching a record high of over $103,000, Bitcoin has dropped over 5% in the past 24 hours, slipping below the $100,000 mark. In contrast, leading altcoins like Ethereum and Solana have weathered the downturn with only minor retracements of about 1%.

Altcoin Performance

According to Bitwise European Head of Research André Dragosch, an increasing number of altcoins have outperformed Bitcoin since the U.S. election in early November. "Our own altseason index indicates that 85% of our tracked altcoins managed to outperform Bitcoin over the past 30 days," Dragosch told The Block. He noted that altcoins are driven by a wider variety of investment narratives, showing an increasing performance dispersion among them.

Dragosch pointed out a growing decoupling between Bitcoin and major altcoins, with performance correlations decreasing, which implies more potential for alpha/outperformance in altcoins than before the U.S. election. The performance dispersion among altcoins has reached its highest level since March 2024, highlighting diversification in investment narratives within the market.

Dragosch also mentioned record inflows into crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) as a sign of rising investor interest. "Weekly inflows into global crypto ETPs just hit the highest level on record, with $3.98 billion having flowed into global crypto ETPs over the past 5 days," he noted, adding that Ethereum ETP inflows set a new daily record high on Thursday.

Bitcoin Price Volatility

After breaking above $103,000, Bitcoin experienced increased volatility, sharply retracing to $92,000 during U.S. trading hours before stabilizing around $98,000. This drop triggered over $487 million in Bitcoin liquidations and a total of $893 million across the crypto market, according to Coinglass data. "Volatility is expected to remain elevated in the coming weeks, especially with the upcoming U.S. job reports that could further heighten market volatility," BRN analyst Valentin Fournier told The Block.

U.S. Jobs Report and Federal Reserve Influence

Cryptocurrency market participants are closely watching the U.S. jobs report for insights that could affect the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision on Dec. 18. Economists anticipate around 200,000 new jobs in November, rebounding from October’s weak numbers.

A robust jobs report might lead the Federal Reserve to reconsider the pace of interest rate cuts, while a disappointing report could intensify concerns over inflation. The next Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting will be critical for shaping the crypto market trajectory, with a 72.1% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut at that meeting. A rate cut could support digital assets by reducing borrowing costs and increasing market liquidity.