The TOTAL3 market capitalization still must increase around 16% than its current level before the euphoric altcoin season begins; until then, volatility will continue, according to a crypto trader.

Pseudonymous crypto trader Daan Crypto Trades said in a Dec. 28 X post that the “euphoria” or “mania” phase should start once the the TOTAL3 — the total market cap of all cryptocurrencies excluding Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) — surpasses its 2021 all-time high of $1.13 trillion and enters price discovery.

The euphoria phase will not begin until TOTAL3 breaches 2021 ATH

The TOTAL3 is currently $962.78 billion at the time of publication, according to TradingView data. It has increased approximately 91.45% since Jan. 1.

“As long as this trades between ~$840B and ~$1.1T, I think it will be choppy,” Daan said.

Some analysts believe the overall crypto market has become more volatile due to traders adopting a more short-term outlook compared to previous years.

Syncracy Capital co-founder Daniel Cheung said in a Dec. 28 X post, “Everyone decided they were George Soros all of a sudden this cycle and constantly monitoring hourly charts to time entries/exits and playing with leverage.”

Cheung said this is the main reason crypto tokens have not seen breakouts as “fast as prior cycles.”

Traders starting to rotate to altcoins

According to CoinMarketCap data, the top three gainers among the top 100 cryptocurrencies over the past seven days are Bitget Token (BGB) with an 80.65% rise, Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) with a 42.30% rise, and Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) with a 31.63% rise.

Related: AI tokens market cap falls 28% from December $70B peak

Meanwhile, with Bitcoin dominance back up to almost 60% amid a price stall in the last few days of 2024, traders’ growing belief is that it may be time to switch their accumulation strategy toward altcoins.

“Altcoins, at this juncture, offer a far more optimal R/R [Risk Reward] profile than Bitcoin does,” pseudonymous crypto trader Dyme said in a Dec. 27 X post, adding:

“Time to DCA Bitcoin is over for another 1.5+ years,” Dyme said.

Magazine: Bitcoin payments are being undermined by centralized stablecoins