Bitcoin hovered just below $120,000 during Asia’s Monday session, inching up 1% on the day and 2.6% over the week. But market attention continues shifting toward altcoins, with capital increasingly rotating into Ethereum (ETH), XRP, Solana (SOL), and Dogecoin (DOGE).
This rotation reflects a growing appetite among institutional investors for diversified crypto exposure — especially in sectors tied to real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and Ethereum-based treasury products.
Ethereum Leads the Charge
ETH rose 3.7% on the day to $3,793, marking a 25% gain over the past week and reaching its highest level since early 2022. Analysts attribute the move to strong inflows into ETH-linked ETFs and renewed demand for tokenized asset products.
“Ethereum and other altcoins are surging due to institutional demand and friendly legislative policies,” said Eugene Cheung, chief commercial officer at OSL. “Traders are hoping to see Ethereum break to new all-time highs — it’s the last of the majors yet to do so this cycle.”
The ETH/BTC ratio, which had been trending lower, has now bounced to its strongest level since Q1 — a signal that markets are again betting on Ethereum to outperform Bitcoin.
Altcoins Broaden the Rally
- XRP climbed 4.1% to $3.55
- SOL jumped 6.6% to $189
- ADA and BNB gained over 3% each
- DOGE surged 9.6% to $0.2774, up 33% on the week — its best 7-day performance in over a year
“Over the past week, altcoins have taken center stage,” said Enmanuel Cardozo, analyst at Brickken. “With Bitcoin stalling just below all-time highs, capital is clearly rotating into broader plays.”
Bitcoin’s dominance rate — its share of total crypto market cap — has declined from 66% in June to 61.75%, supporting the view that a new altcoin cycle may be developing as Q3 begins.
Policy Winds and the RWA Narrative
Adding to bullish sentiment is the growing narrative around tokenized real-world assets (RWAs). With over $24 billion now represented on-chain, projects tokenizing private credit, Treasuries, and real estate are gaining serious institutional traction. BlackRock and JPMorgan are among the firms exploring or expanding their exposure to this space.
“Tokenized assets are now a meaningful part of DeFi’s total value locked,” Cardozo said.
Meanwhile, the GENIUS Act — U.S. legislation aimed at regulating stablecoins and clarifying crypto taxation — failed a procedural vote last week but remains under active consideration. Even in delay, it adds a layer of policy momentum to the altcoin thesis.
Looking Ahead
“Some will credit stablecoin and RWA narratives,” said Augustine Fan, head of insights at SignalPlus. “But we think it’s just good old-fashioned risk-on spillover — most TradFi players are already fully positioned in BTC.”
While analysts caution that it may be too early to declare a full-blown ‘altseason,’ the momentum behind altcoins — particularly those linked to RWAs and institutional infrastructure — appears to be accelerating.
“If Bitcoin consolidates in this range, altcoins tied to real-world finance could lead the next leg up,” Cardozo added.
