Only Nine of the Top 50 Altcoins Beat Bitcoin Since Its Peak
Bitcoin outperformed 41 of the 50 largest altcoins at the time of its peak last October, even as market breadth improved recently.
Bitcoin (BTC) has outperformed 41 of the 50 largest altcoins at the time of its peak last October, showing how few tokens have surpassed the market leader over the period.
Zcash (ZEC) posted the strongest relative performance, delivering nearly 14.5 times Bitcoin’s return. Eight other tokens also outperformed BTC, while the remaining 41 failed to keep pace.
The comparison measures performance against Bitcoin rather than dollar returns. Tokens that lagged BTC may still have gained in dollar terms, but shifting capital away from Bitcoin into more risk-on altcoins produced weaker relative results.
Earlier coverage found that only nine of the 50 largest altcoins outperformed Bitcoin.
Recent market breadth has improved. More than 72% of tracked altcoins outperformed BTC over the past week, compared with a peak of 39% during the August breakout rally. Altcoin perpetual open interest increased only slightly over the past month.
The shift pushed an altcoin-cycle signal into altcoin-season territory. Broader market share, however, has not followed. Altcoins’ 90-day share change remained negative at -0.9%, even as their combined market capitalization rose 21% over the preceding month.
The figures show stronger short-term participation among altcoins, while Bitcoin continues to hold the longer-period performance advantage across most of the group.
