Bitcoin Nears Weekly Peak as Altcoins Lag in Today’s Crypto Markets

Bitcoin held steady near weekly highs on Thursday as market concerns eased, while most altcoins remained subdued. Early signs of recovery are emerging despite broader downtrends.

Bitcoin traded around $93,500, and Ether rose to $3,200 following the Fusaka upgrade. The Fear & Greed Index climbed to 27/100, moving out of the “extreme fear” zone and reflecting growing market optimism.

However, Bitcoin and most altcoins are still in downtrends dating back to early October, with a series of lower highs and lower lows. Analysts note that Bitcoin would need to break above $98,500 to signal a meaningful bullish reversal. The CoinDesk 20 (CD20) Index rose 1.13% in the past 24 hours, building on Tuesday’s rally.

Derivatives Snapshot

Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility (BVIV) fell to 48.44%, the lowest since Nov. 14, after spiking to 65% on Nov. 21 amid a dip toward $80,000.
Ether volatility fell to 72%, the lowest since Nov. 3.
BTC puts continue to trade at a premium over calls, while Ether options show slight bullishness for expiries after August 2026, signaling demand for protective puts and call-overwriting strategies.
The $100K BTC call remains the most popular options play, with $2.82 billion in open interest. Strangles dominated block flows for both BTC and Ether.
Futures activity shows ZEC open interest up 6%, ETH up 4%, and FART futures up 22%, reflecting speculative activity.

Altcoin Market
Altcoins largely lag Bitcoin. CoinMarketCap’s “altcoin season” indicator fell to 20/100, highlighting investor preference for Bitcoin over higher-risk tokens. Exceptions in the past 24 hours included TAO, ENA, and AVAX, which gained 4.5%–8.5%. Hedera (HBAR) dropped 3.8% as trading volume fell 15% to $245 million.

Compared with late 2024, when memecoins and decentralized derivatives dominated, the altcoin market has matured, with performance increasingly tied to development rather than speculation. Privacy coins, which surged from September to November, are now in a corrective phase: ZEC down 29.4% and DASH down 22% over the past week.