Altcoins are struggling with trading volumes at multi-year lows, while social interest across crypto markets is in freefall. It does look a bit like the pullbacks of 2019 and 2022.
But this time, there’s a difference. Bitcoin [BTC] is holding its ground near cycle highs, and altcoins are no longer collapsing.
Spot trading activity in December across major altcoins has slowed massively.
Ripple’s XRP’s [XRP] volume slipped to about $32 billion, its weakest showing of 2025. Binance [BNB] exchange accounted for nearly half of that.
BNB, with just $13.7 billion in volume (among its lowest this year), was again dominated by Binance exchange flows.
Solana [SOL], often seen as the most active large-cap alt, fell to roughly $43 billion, its softest level since 2024.
Cardano [ADA] also lagged, recording around $3.8 billion, so there’s subdued interest across venues.
The drop in spot volumes was followed by a collapse in public interest. Google Trends data showed crypto-related searches at near multi-year lows, even at elevated prices.
Over the past five years, spikes in attention have come in times of surges or panic. What’s interesting now, is the absence of both.
90-day data confirmed that interest has fallen through December, with no rebound across Bitcoin or major altcoins.
As Alphractal CEO Joao Wedson posted on X, such conditions have usually come before long periods of consolidation… or extended bear markets.
Weak volumes and collapsing interest definitely give reason to panic.
This is where relative performance starts to matter. Altcoins are stabilizing, while Bitcoin remains stretched at elevated levels.
According to Wedson, altcoins stopped making new lows even as large-cap leaders corrected further in 2019 and 2022. That allowed altcoins to outperform Bitcoin regardless of BTC’s short-term direction.
If Bitcoin does see another leg down, the fall may be absorbed unevenly. With many altcoins already compressed, relative strength could swim away from BTC.
