Wintermute: Next Altcoin Season May Benefit Only a Select Few Tokens, as Capital Continues to Concentrate in Top Assets

Odaily News: Crypto market maker Wintermute states that the next altcoin season may see only a few winners, with market capital increasingly concentrating in leading tokens.

According to Wintermute data, institutional clients accounted for 72% of its over-the-counter spot trading flow in the first half of 2026, a record high. Institutional capital typically reduces activity about one day after a significant price surge, while retail capital averages around three days, indicating that institutional capital tends to concentrate allocations in a small number of tokens and exits trades more quickly.

Looking at the broader market, CryptoQuant data shows that altcoin trading volume denominated in Bitcoin has approached its lowest level since 2021. Currently, the top ten non-stablecoin altcoins account for approximately 80.5% of the total market value of non-Bitcoin, non-stablecoin crypto assets.

Additionally, Kaiko data shows that the share of the top ten altcoins in overall altcoin trading volume has risen to 63%, up from around 50% several months ago, further strengthening the trend of capital concentration. (Cointelegraph)