Is the altcoin season heating up? Ethereum surpasses $4.5K as investors look for the best altcoin.

For years, cryptocurrency traders have awaited the elusive altcoin season – that period when coins other than Bitcoin offer the best market returns.

Recent data suggests that the next cycle may already be underway; however, with changing market structures, regulatory uncertainty, and volatile liquidity dynamics, investors will need to move cautiously.

What defines an altcoin season?

According to the CoinMarketCap Altcoin Season Index, the threshold is simple: if 75% of the top 100 tokens (excluding stablecoins) outperform Bitcoin over the last 90 days, we are officially in altcoin season. If less than 25% do, the market is in Bitcoin season.

Generally, the Bitcoin season is the norm – with a massive capitalization of $2.2T, the rest of the crypto market is always trying to catch up.

Recent market momentum

The last two months have shown notable movements. In August, the Altcoin Season Index jumped from 39 to 58. Bitcoin's dominance began to decrease from its summer highs, historically a precursor to the outperformance of altcoins.

Large-cap altcoins led the charge. Ethereum ($ETH) has closed the gap with Bitcoin, remaining strong above $4K; it is currently trading at $4.5K with a market cap of $500B, while tokens like Chainlink ($LINK), Uniswap ($UNI), and several exchange tokens have also gained ground.

Memecoins have also not fallen behind; their total market capitalization has increased by 8% over the month.

It is a strangely uncertain yet confident market, concerned about inflation and macroeconomic pressures, but eagerly seeking the next big opportunity.

Bitcoin Hyper ($HYPER) – Hybrid Layer 2 expands the reach of Bitcoin to DeFi

Take the strength and stability of Bitcoin and add a touch of programmability and speed from Solana.

The result is Bitcoin Hyper, a Layer 2 solution that uses a canonical bridge of Bitcoin to move Bitcoin to the new layer, creating wrapped Bitcoin that can be used for DeFi, staking, and more.

The presale surpassed $15M earlier this week as investors saw the potential of $HYPER. Our prediction shows that the token could rise from its current $0.012905 to $0.32, an increase of more than 2000%.

Solana ($SOL) – The favorite among altcoins sees movement in its treasury

Solana continues to outperform the market in 2025, driven by the growing treasury movement. The latest boost came from the $1.65B private placement by Forward Industries to expand its acquisitions of $SOL.

$SOL has risen more than 20% in the last month and is currently trading above $240.

Solana's treasuries have a key advantage: yield generation. The programmability of Solana and DeFi integration mean they can provide long-term yield for investors.

Snorter Token ($SNORT) – Navigate through the madness of Solana memecoins

The Snorter Bot gives traders a critical edge in the wild world of Solana memecoins. No more guessing which tokens might make big moves.

With the $SNORT token, traders receive lower fees on trades and swaps. It is currently on presale at $0.1041, but our prediction shows the potential to rise to $1.92 by the end of next year.

The index suggests that the market is at some midpoint of the Bitcoin-altcoin cycle. Will it evolve into a full altcoin season? And how far will $HYPER, $SOL and $SNORT reach if it does?

I wonder if we are really facing a new golden era for altcoins or if it is just another passing cycle that will end up returning the spotlight to Bitcoin. Personally, I believe that many of these projects are overvalued and lack real utility beyond speculation.