Bitcoin Stalls Near $111K as Altcoins Extend Outperformance
Nearly $250 million in derivatives liquidations hit the crypto market in the past 24 hours, despite muted overall volatility.
Bitcoin (BTC) is trading tightly around $111,000, down 2.9% over the past month and at its weakest level in weeks. Its market dominance has slipped from 61% to 57%, reflecting a shift in momentum toward altcoins.
Ethereum (ETH) climbed 1.1% overnight and has advanced 21% in the past 30 days, while Solana (SOL) rose 0.43% on the session and is up 27.5% over the month. The CoinDesk 20 Index gained 0.46% intraday and 1.7% over the past day, with all components posting green.
Nick Forster, founder of Derive.xyz, said ETH carries a 44% probability of hitting $6,000 by late 2025 as institutional participation accelerates. “ETF holdings of ETH increased by 250,000 last week, from 6.5 million to 6.74 million,” he said.
Derivatives Flows and Positioning
- Perpetual open interest rose to $114 billion, Laevitas data show.
- A $90M liquidation cluster sits at $112,200, with another $76.6M cluster near $110,000, according to Binance heatmaps.
- Options flows skew slightly bullish: 26.4K contracts traded in 24h, with calls making up 51.6%. Top positions include a $108K put and $114K call, both expiring Sept. 26.
- Funding rates remain positive across most tokens, except TRX, which reflects a -10.2% APR.
Altcoins Take the Lead
Bitcoin’s reduced market share highlights a developing altcoin cycle:
- BTC: -2.9% in 30 days
- ETH: +21% in 30 days
- SOL: +27.5% in 30 days
The trend has been supported by treasury accumulation of altcoins and a broad market reset after BTC’s surge to $124,000 in August. Analysts note BTC dominance has historically fallen to as low as 39%, suggesting the current rotation may have further to run.
Technical signals also show several altcoins as oversold relative to BTC, leaving room for continued relative strength.
