Even when Bitcoin was doing really well, big-ticket stocks barely moved.
But things have changed. We see strong arguments against the rise of altcoins. how? Let’s understand that.
Altcoin Rally vs Dead Cat Bounce: Key Differences Explained
First of all, how can you differentiate between an alternative rally and a dead cat bounce? A dead cat bounce occurs when a coin pumps up after a period of bearish consolidation. A dead cat bounce is a bull trap, and coins are thrown away after the bounce. An altcoin rally occurs when a major altcoin pumps aggressively, cools down, and pumps again. Usually that happens after a Bitcoin ATH and a short period of weakness.
This is exactly what happened in October. Bitcoin registered an ATH and the entire market took a hit in October. In such a situation, even if the price is good, the sentiment will be very bearish (extreme fear). Sentiment was mostly bullish from May 2025 to October 2025. Sentiment was reset on October 4th and sentiment has been bearish (FEAR) ever since.
Notably, Bitcoin is still above $100,000, down just 25% from its ATH. Therefore, price is not very important here.
Therefore, this stage of price movement follows the characteristics of an alternative rally rather than a dead cat bounce. The first piece of evidence? ZEC rally. ZEC has pumped more than 1200% since September 2025.
ZEC is not a meme coin. It does not belong to any dominant narrative. But in just three months, it increased 13 times and is still going strong.
This is what happened with FET in January 2024.
This is what happened with LTC in 2021.
Alternative rally gains momentum as ZEC leads November rally
Therefore, we can expect other alts to continue pumping in November and December.
Mainly large-cap stocks. We cannot expect institutional funds to circulate from Bitcoin to ETH to major alternative currencies. Traditional crypto whales dominate the alt market. That was confirmed when $PYR rose 160% in one day.
Note that the $PYR pump does not mean shifting focus to GameFi. GameFi is a dead story in 2025. A strong $PYR doesn’t mean interest in small-cap stocks either. These are the stories that trap retail. Our strategy is to continue with solid projects. These projects will have their own ZEC time in the coming weeks.
ZEC proves that 13x for large caps is easy even in Q4 2025. ZEC did not pump in 2024 or 2025, so no one expected ZEC to move. Similarly, many alternatives do not have team or VC vesting in the near future. Alternatively, it is a fully vested coin. Whales are likely to target such coins next. Additionally, Bitcoin’s dominance temporarily broke away from the uptrend. In case of a strong alternatives rally, Bitcoin’s dominance should be less than 57%.
So what should we do?
- We now believe that an alternative rally is a realistic possibility.
- ZEC is the first mover in the Q4 alternative rally.
- The first narrative that gains momentum will be the most dominant in this alternative rally. I don’t know what it is. But the good thing is that to play the story, you only need to react to market signals instead of preparing in advance.
- Don’t touch old coins expecting miracles like ZEC. EOS, Tezos, Cardano, Polkadot, Cosmos, etc. are not the next ZEC.
Disclaimer
The information provided by Altcoin Buzz does not constitute financial advice. It is for educational, entertainment, and informational purposes only. All opinions and strategies shared are those of the writer/reviewer, and their risk tolerance may differ from yours. We do not accept any responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of investments related to the information provided. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are high-risk assets. Therefore, please conduct thorough due diligence. Copyright Altcoin Buzz Pte Ltd.
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