Altcoins might finally be getting a bit of breathing room. According to analyst Dr Cat, the current setup indicates that altcoins could start outperforming Bitcoin for a short period in early January, possibly sometime between the 5th and the 12th.
The interesting part is that this view is not based on price hype, but on Bitcoin dominance. When dominance runs into resistance and starts to roll over, altcoins often get their chance to move.
What you'll learn 👉
Bitcoin Dominance Is Flashing Warning Signs
Dr Cat looks at what he calls the “real” Bitcoin dominance chart, which removes stablecoins to give a clearer picture of capital flow. On the weekly timeframe, dominance is now pushing into resistance while showing a triple bearish bias using Ichimoku signals.
The cloud, the Tenkan-Kijun relationship, and the Chikou Span are all lining up in a way that usually leads to rejection rather than a clean breakout. Historically, when dominance hits this kind of setup, it tends to pull back. When that happens, altcoins often start to outperform Bitcoin, even if BTC itself doesn’t sell off hard.
The Timing Lines Up With a Key Bitcoin Zone
What makes this setup stand out is the timing. January 5 also marks the start of a period where the Bitcoin price could attempt another move higher, with resistance shifting from around $89,000 toward $96,000.
In the past, Bitcoin grinding higher while dominance stalls has been a decent environment for altcoins. Bitcoin attracts capital, but not aggressively enough to crush altcoin performance. That usually leads to short bursts where altcoins quietly do better.
This doesn’t automatically point to a full altseason. It looks more like a mini rotation than a broad market breakout.
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Why This May Not Feel Like a Classic Altseason
Even if dominance drops, it may not feel obvious. The market is heavily diluted now, with far more tokens than in previous cycles. Many of them need a lot of capital just to move the price slightly.
We’ve seen this before. During the last big dominance drop, many traders kept asking when altseason would start, even though it was technically already happening. Gains were selective, not widespread. That same pattern could play out again, with strength concentrated in a smaller group of altcoins.
Dr Cat also points out a few different paths from here. The more bullish outcome for altcoins would be a deeper rejection in dominance, where it makes a lower low and the Chikou Span closes below the cloud on the weekly chart.
A less favorable outcome would be an initial rejection followed by consolidation and then continuation higher in dominance. Dr Cat sees this as less likely, given how higher timeframes currently look.
What This Means Going Forward
Altcoins appear to be entering a zone where relative strength is more likely than weakness. The move might be limited, but the structure indicates early January could offer better opportunities than what we’ve seen recently. The key, as always, will be timing and picking the right names rather than expecting everything to move at once.
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