Ethereum Surge Shifts Focus to Altcoins as Speculation Heats Up

In brief

Ethereum’s recent surge, driven by institutional ETF inflows, has sparked increased market confidence in potential altcoin season.
Top altcoins like Solana, Dogecoin, XRP and meme coins are likely to see an increased speculative activity.
Analysts believe this phase could last until November Ethereum-betas could catch a headwind due to the cautiously optimistic due to looming macroeconomic events and uncertainty surrounding trade deals.

The Ethereum breakout above its multi-year hurdle and Bitcoin’s weekend rally have caused increased expectations of an altcoin season. Analysts suggest a pause in the uptrend for these top cryptos could pave the way for altcoins to explode if macro conditions remain relatively stable.

In just four months, Ethereum has more than tripled owing to the massive inflow of capital from digital asset treasuries and spot U.S. Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs).

Bitcoin has also seen a similar ascent, rising more than 600% in the past two years.

“The conditions are lining up” for an altcoin season, Shashank Sripada, co-founder and chief operating officer of generative AI network GAIA, told Decrypt.

Historically, altcoin season begins as capital rotates into risky tokens as the top cryptos pause their explosive rally.

Coinanlyze data shows a clear dominance of altcoins compared to Ethereum. An uptick in this metric reveals increased speculation and leverage. The Coinglass Alt Season Index, which measures all non-Bitcoin assets against BTC, is still sitting at 39 after having most recently peaked at 88 in early December.

João Wedson, founder and CEO of crypto data analytics platforms Alphractal said, “Altcoin fun is just getting started—and it could last until November,” in an X post.

Ethereum’s recent price performance, driven mostly by institutional interest in the asset and ETF inflows could fuel the altcoin season.

The real Altcoin Season hasn’t even started yet
Smart money flows from BTC to ETH, then to Top Caps, and finally to Mid & Low Caps. Altcoin fun is just getting started — and it could last until November. pic.twitter.com/OYbTtL8OF5
— Joao Wedson (@joao_wedson) August 11, 2025

Last week’s $325 million inflow for the second-largest crypto far exceeded the top crypto’s $247 million. It shows Ethereum is playing catch-up with Bitcoin ETF inflows.

“That kind of progress tends to pull capital into quality altcoins across the board,” explained Sripada.

With the narrative firmly focussed on Ethereum, Sripada said, “money will likely rotate into projects built tightly around Ethereum.”

The top five altcoins based on open interest and volume include Solana, XRP, Dogecoin and Ethena. Other Ethereum-betas include Lido DAO, Chainlink, Shiba Inu, Pepe Coin and Floki.

Analysts that previously spoke to Decrypt also hinted that betas to top cryptos like Bitcoin and Ethereum are likely to see an explosive leg, but also caution that macroeconomic conditions remain sensitive and could disrupt this bullish outlook.