Bitcoin Slides to $112K, But Altcoins Fail to Rally—Bitfinex Sees “De-risking” Trend
Despite a sharp dip in Bitcoin (BTC) to $112,000, the long-anticipated altcoin season has failed to materialize, with several major altcoins posting losses instead of gains. Analysts at Bitfinex suggest this is a sign of broad de-risking in the crypto market rather than sector rotation into high-beta assets.
Bitcoin Pulls Back from All-Time Highs
Bitcoin dropped to $112,044 on Sunday before stabilizing near $113,800 at the time of writing, per data from Nansen. This follows a sharp decline from its July 14 all-time high of $123,100, marking a significant pullback in a relatively short period.
Altcoins Show No Signs of Summer
Traditionally, a drop in Bitcoin dominance and a rally in Ether (ETH) have been indicators of an incoming altcoin season. Over the past 30 days:
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Bitcoin dominance has fallen by 5.5%
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Ether has surged by 40%
However, that shift hasn’t benefited altcoins. On the contrary:
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Solana (SOL) is down 9.45% in the past week
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XRP is down 5.48%
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Dogecoin (DOGE) fell 10.80%
“This break did not translate into a sustained altcoin bid — quite the opposite,” Bitfinex wrote in its Tuesday market report.
Market Sentiment: Profit-Taking, Not Rotation
Bitfinex analysts argue that the simultaneous decline in Bitcoin and altcoins indicates a loss of speculative appetite rather than a healthy rotation into riskier assets.
They noted that the “OTHERS” index—which tracks the broader altcoin market excluding the top 10 coins—has declined 18.7% over the past 10 days, before a slight rebound.
“The rapid drawdown highlights a fast-paced de-risking across the high-beta segments of the market,” the report stated.
It seems likely that we’ll see a breakout occur on Gold.
That would result into pain on the #Altcoin markets, as August tends to be a typically bad month for risk-on assets.
However, during those periods, lows are set and that’s the moment you want to accumulate. pic.twitter.com/XOrvizoWF6
— Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL) August 5, 2025
The analysts suggested that the market may be entering a consolidation phase, though macro developments or renewed inflows into crypto ETFs could quickly change the landscape.
Not Everyone Is Bearish on Alts
While Bitfinex is cautious, some market participants still believe an altcoin breakout is imminent.
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Crypto analyst Ted posted on X:
“This is your best opportunity to stack utility alts before they go parabolic.”
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Trader Merlijn The Trader added:
“Alts coiling for a violent breakout. When this spring releases… It’s game on.”
Previously, the CoinMarketCap Altcoin Season Index signaled the beginning of “Altcoin Season” with a score of 55/100 on July 21. But as of Tuesday, that reading has fallen to 40/100, marking a return to “Bitcoin Season.”
