Analysis: The crypto market needs a "shitcoin purge" before Bitcoin can begin a sustainable bull run

Odaily Planet Daily News: Cryptocurrency market analyst and Into The Cryptoverse founder Ben Cowen stated that the crypto market is undergoing a "purge" of millions of altcoins, a process necessary for Bitcoin to enter a sustainable bull market cycle. The "shitcoin cleanup" has actually been happening since 2021, but a larger-scale clearance is still needed for the market to restore a healthy structure. He believes that capital is continuously flowing from high-risk tokens to Bitcoin, with the rising BTC dominance rate being a clear signal.

Data shows that the number of tokens tracked by GeckoTerminal has exceeded 25 million, with over 11.6 million projects failing in 2025 alone, primarily due to the burst of the Meme coin bubble. CoinShares researcher Luke Nolan stated that the claim "95% of tokens are worthless" is reasonable.

Although Bitcoin has returned above $81,000, Ben Cowen remains cautious, believing that BTC is still in a bear market phase. He warned that if it fails to firmly hold the key resistance level of around $88,880, the price could retrace to the $58,000 to $62,000 range. Against the backdrop of delayed interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and ongoing geopolitical risks, the crypto market continues to face short-term pressure. "2026 looks more like a reset year rather than a year for new all-time highs." (CoinDesk)