KEY POINTS
- Solana increased by 17% in the last 24 hours, compared to Bitcoin's 10% spike
- AVAX and $LINK are also up, as well as memecoins $DOGE and $SHIB
- Some analysts have said ahead of the US elections that an altcoin season is possible
The cryptocurrency community has gone wild after Bitcoin hit a new all-time high late Tuesday as the U.S. waits for the outcome of the heated 2024 elections. However, some altcoins performed better than BTC even as the world's top digital currency by market cap hit a new milestone.
Data from CoinGecko showed that Bitcoin is now challenging $75,000 after it passed its March all-time high of $73,000 and hit $74,978 late Tuesday. The world's pioneer cryptocurrency is up by nearly 10% in the last 24 hours.
Is Altcoin Season In?
While BTC was the highlight of the day, altcoins were the story of election day, with some digital coins beyond the pioneer crypto asset performing much better than the leader.
For instance, Dogecoin (DOGE), Elon Musk's favorite memecoin, was up by 30% in the last day, and Solana (SOL), a rising darling among crypto users and investors, increased by 17%.
Another beloved meme token, Shiba Inu (SHIB), is also on the rise, climbing by 12% in the past day. Avalanche (AVAX) is up by nearly 15%, while Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Chainlink (LINK) are both on a nearly 13% spike.
As of early Wednesday, the top trending coins are MAGA (TRUMP), DOGE, and GRASS, while the largest gainers in the last 24 hours are all memecoins: Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT), Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and MOAI.
Sentiment on Altcoins Before US Elections
Even before Bitcoin surpassed its previous all-time high, some industry analysts were already expecting an altcoin season, wherein crypto tokens beyond BTC will outshine the leading digital asset.
Jupiter Zheng, Partner of Liquid Funds & Research for HashKey Capital, previously told International Business Times that exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will boost BTC prices, a scenario "crucial" to kickstart the altcoin season. "Therefore, if we observe significant inflows into the ETF, we can expect an altcoin season to be on the horizon," he said.
The Bullish Solana Narrative
Some altcoins have already been making rounds in crypto circles in recent months, specifically XRP, amid increasing attention from institutions for XRP ETFs. However, Solana has taken the altcoin conversation to a different level.
SOL had a good October as activity in the Solana blockchain surged. Analysts have also provided bullish outlooks for the altcoin, especially as SOL outperformed BTC for a seven-day period in the month.
Interest in Solana-based tokens also helped drive SOL prices higher, including popular Numogram (GNON), which is up by over 13% in the last 24 hours.
Beyond the active Solana network, some experts see altcoins going higher as long as BTC continues going up under a second Donald Trump presidency.
