The crypto market welcomes a new round of pump, but the alts performance is not as satisfactory.

Recently, the crypto market has once again welcomed a pump. Bitcoin has broken through the $110,000 threshold, setting a new historical high; Ethereum has risen over 45% in the past month. However, in this round of market performance, alts have not met expectations, leaving many investors confused.

The macro environment is improving, and mainstream coins benefit significantly.

By mid-May 2025, the macro market shows a positive trend. The trade relations between China and the United States are easing, with both sides agreeing to reduce tariffs from a peak of 125% to 10%. This move not only boosts market sentiment but also releases positive inflation signals. As a result, U.S. stocks enter an upward channel, with the S&P 500 index nearing an all-time high.

The cryptocurrency market also benefits from this favorable environment. Data shows that since March, net inflows of funds into crypto assets, led by Bitcoin, have reached $9.3 billion, with most concentrated in the spot market. Trading activity during the Eastern Time zone has significantly increased, reflecting a trend of substantial U.S. capital entering the market.

Against this backdrop, mainstream coins have performed remarkably. Bitcoin broke through $110,000 on May 22, setting a new historical high; Ethereum has shown strong momentum since April, rising to around $2,629 as of May 22, with the potential to break the $3,000 mark.

Mainstream coins become a "safe haven" for funds

The main reasons why mainstream coins can achieve excess returns in this round of market trends are as follows:

1. Regulatory expectations are clearer: Bitcoin and Ethereum have stronger compliance attributes, and U.S. regulatory agencies are gradually clarifying their classifications.

2. Better liquidity: Large institutions continuously absorb Bitcoin through spot products or custody services.

3. More complete narrative: BTCFi and Ethereum L2 ecosystem have recently become market hotspots.

These factors have led mainstream coins to achieve excessive premiums in the new round of market trends, while alts have fallen into the margins of funding.

Reasons for the Poor Performance of Alts

1. Mature user mindset: After experiencing the bull market of 2021 and the subsequent deep corrections, investors have generally developed a more cautious trading mentality. They place greater importance on the actual number of users and on-chain activity of a project, tending to choose projects that possess innovative mechanisms, clear airdrop mechanisms, and ecological support.

2. Change in Influencer Behavior: Some influencers have shifted from "content distributors" to "market manipulators," frequently participating in the "airdrop farming + group pulling distraction" strategy, which increases the likelihood of losses for ordinary users. This behavior is accelerating the destruction of trust in altcoins.

3. Hotspot Shift: The current crypto narrative is focused on BTCFi, AI, Restaking, and other tracks. Traditional altcoin projects lack connection to mainstream narratives, making it difficult to attract new traffic attention.

4. Market trust and liquidity structure have been rewritten: Most projects are only active in the first 30 days after launch, after which liquidity dries up. Market makers concentrate their resources on mainstream coins and compliant stablecoins, while altcoin trading pairs have been delisted by multiple exchanges.

New "altcoin play" rises

1. Points and Airdrop Mechanism: Some trading platforms have designed task systems, points redemption, and airdrop activities to rekindle user engagement. These mechanisms aim to lower participation barriers, enhance user stickiness, and expand community influence.

2. Meme coins: In 2025, Meme coins will show stronger community-driven characteristics. Project teams will quickly gather popularity through social media, community activities, and viral content dissemination. However, their sustainability is questioned, and the market calls for project teams to continuously optimize aspects such as security, governance structure, and community building.

The Future Outlook of Alts

To break through in the future market, alts need to undergo the following transformations:

1. Reconstruction Mechanism: Truly competitive projects should reconstruct the Token economic model, introduce a fairer airdrop mechanism, and guide community co-governance through DAO, allowing users to transform from speculators into ecological co-builders.

2. Focus on user needs: Users in 2025 are more concerned about the possibility of low-cost trial and error, the ability to exit at any time, and whether they are treated as competitors. Project teams need to redesign user participation paths, providing clear expectation management and quick feedback.

3. Rebuilding user trust: The trading platform is constructing a "Task → Incentive → Airdrop → Listing" user acquisition path. Community-driven new narrative systems, such as Telegram fission, creator DAOs, and low-threshold opinion leader incubation tools, have become the infrastructure for the autonomous flow of alts.

Conclusion

The altcoin market is currently undergoing a reshuffling phase. Projects that lack mechanism innovation and community participation may be eliminated during this cycle. However, projects that truly understand changes in user behavior, reconstruct incentive structures, and can coexist and achieve win-win outcomes with the community still have the potential to stand out in a localized bull market.

The future of the crypto market is no longer about "who shouts the loudest wins", but rather "who can stabilize people's hearts will go further". For investors, it is important to remain cautious when participating in alts investment and to focus on the actual value of the projects and their long-term development potential.