CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju recently argued that altcoin season — a period of rapidly appreciating altcoin prices typically following a Bitcoin (<a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/bitcoin-price" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">BTC</a>) bull market — will require new capital injections from retail traders to commence.
The quantitative analyst <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/ki_young_ju/status/1861693773086081273" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" text="null" title="https://x.com/ki_young_ju/status/1861693773086081273">wrote</a> that institutional money is already tied up within exchange-traded funds, and the institutional investors, who own crypto indirectly through investment vehicles, are unlikely to rotate gains from blue-chip assets like BTC or Ether (<a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/ethereum-price" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">ETH</a>) into altcoins. Ju wrote:
<blockquote>
 “For altcoins to reach a new all-time high market capitalization, they will require a significant influx of fresh capital to crypto exchanges. The altcoin market cap below its previous ATH indicates reduced fresh liquidity from new exchange users.”
</blockquote>
“Altcoins should focus on developing independent strategies to attract new capital rather than relying on Bitcoin’s momentum,” the analyst concluded while clarifying that he is still “bullish” on altcoins.
<figure>
 <img alt="Altseason delayed due to lack of fresh retail capital — Ki Young Ju" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-11/01936f30-9611-7e22-b583-a38b36ddf347" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">
 Bitcoin market capitalization vs. altcoin market capitalization. Source: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/ki_young_ju/status/1861693773086081273" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" text="null" title="https://x.com/ki_young_ju/status/1861693773086081273">Ki Young Ju</a>
 </figcaption>
</figure>
Related: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/current-bitcoin-price-ceiling-135-k-ki-young-ju" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Current Bitcoin price ceiling projected at $135K — Ki Young Ju</a>
<h2 id="reigniting-retail-fomo">Reigniting retail FOMO</h2>
The CryptoQuant CEO wrote that reigniting retail FOMO (fear of missing out) is central to attracting fresh capital that will drive altcoin prices higher — particularly altcoins with a smaller market capitalization.
In October 2024, popular trader Willy Woo said that <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-altcoin-seasons-crypto-cycle-willy-woo-crypto-analyst" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">altcoin seasons would weaken</a> with each market cycle. The trader <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/woonomic/status/1850081536269234432" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">told</a> his followers on social media:
<blockquote>
 “There will be echo fractals of mid-caps and low-caps pumping after BTC pumps as investors chase returns higher on the risk curve. This is a normal part of markets, and we see this in equities — it's just alt seasons will be weaker each cycle on from the great 2017 alt bubble.”
</blockquote>
Several indicators may signal that retail traders are already catching FOMO. Open interest in the Ether futures market <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/ether-futures-open-interest-hits-all-time-high-is-the-eth-bull-run-starting" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">reached a new high on Nov. 27</a> — indicating heightened market interest and a potential bull run for the smart contract asset that could spill over into other cryptocurrencies.
Retail investors also <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/micro-strategy-30-b-biggest-4-day-drop-bitcoin-fell-7-99-8k" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">purchased approximately $100 million in MicroStrategy shares</a> during the past seven days. The stock has become a <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/HODL15Capital/status/1861833648506323406" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">favorite</a> among traders — particularly retail traders who view MicroStrategy as a leveraged Bitcoin bet.
Magazine: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/bitcoin-dominance-crypto-predictions-bull-run-benjamin-cowen-hall-of-flame/" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Bitcoin dominance will fall in 2025: Benjamin Cowen, X Hall of Flame</a>

Altseason delayed due to lack of fresh retail capital — Ki Young Ju

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