Altcoin Season Coming Later This Year, Bitfinex Says

An altcoin season could take off later this year, driven by the SEC’s expected approval of ETFs for smaller-cap tokens and a rebound in Bitcoin ETF inflows.

That’s according to researchers at Bitfinex, who said in research note that such a “rising tide lifts all boats’ environment” is poised for later in the year.

Once new crypto ETFs and Bitcoin ETFS start to gain momentum, they are likely to generate sustained demand, the researchers said, adding that this would create the conditions “for a broader re-rating across the digital asset complex.” 

That’s as US spot Bitcoin ETFs ended a multi-day outflows streak with $219.1 million inflows on Aug. 25, data from Farside Investors shows. Prior to these positive flows, the funds had posted net daily outflows every day last week.

US spot Bitcoin ETF flows (Source: Farside Investors) 

The biggest withdrawals for that period happened on Aug. 19, when investors pulled $523.3 million out of the products.

Crypto Investors Showing Softer Appetite For Risk 

The Bitfinex analysts also said that investors are currently showing a “softer appetite for risk.”

“While capital inflows remain positive, the muted trajectory reflects a more cautious investor base, contrasting with the aggressive demand that characterised previous ATH surges,” they wrote.

The researchers did, however, say that all signals in the market point to “a healthy longer timeframe” backdrop.  

They went on to predict that capital inflows will initially go towards ETH, before turning to a “broader set” of altcoins in “due course.” 

“Altcoins are beginning to see rotating liquidity flows, though we believe more significant capital rotation into higher-risk assets will only emerge later in the cycle,” the researchers wrote.

Recent flows for spot ETH ETFs support that observation. On the same day that the US spot BTC ETFs broke their outflows streak, the ETH funds extended their positive flows streak to three days. 

That’s after investors poured $443.9 million into the funds collectively yesterday. BlackRock’s ETHA led the charge with $314.9 million inflows, while Grayscale’s ETHE was the only one to suffer outflows on the day.

Bloomberg Analysts Predicts “ETF Summer” For Altcoins

Spot Bitcoin and spot Ethereum ETFs launched last year, and have since seen billions of dollars in cumulative inflows. With this success in mind, issuers have now started exploring similar investment products for smaller tokens.

Bloomberg ETF analysts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart have noted active engagement between the SEC and bidding issuers, leading them to raise their odds that products for altcoins will get approved soon. 

Back in June, Seyffart and his colleague subsequently raised their approval odds “for the vast majority of the spot crypto ETF filings to 90% or higher,” adding that these funds getting the greenlight is no longer a matter of if, but when.  

NEW: @EricBalchunas & I are raising our odds for the vast majority of the spot crypto ETF filings to 90% or higher. Engagement from the SEC is a very positive sign in our opinion pic.twitter.com/5dh8G8rK6Y

— James Seyffart (@JSeyff) June 20, 2025

The analysts then revised their odds for which altcoin ETFs will likely get approved first. In a follow-up X post, they predicted that products for a basket of altcoins, Litecoin (LTC), Solana (SOL), XRP, and Dogecoin (DOGE) have a 95% success chance of getting the regulatory nod.

“We expect a wave of new ETFs in this second half of 2025,’ they added.

That’s after Balchunas said investors should get ready for a potential “Alt Coin ETF Summer,” with SOL likely leading the way. 

VanEck, 21Shares, Bitwise, Grayscale, Canary Capital, Franklin Templeton, Fidelity and CoinShares have all filed with the SEC for their own spot Solana ETFs. Many of these filings also included amended S-1 forms, which supports Balchunas and Seyffart’s observation that there has been active engagement between the SEC and bidding issuers. 

Apart from SOL products, there have also been numerous filings for spot XRP ETFs following the closing of the yearslong case between Ripple and the SEC. Companies that have filed for these XRP products include Grayscale, Bitwise, Canary Capital, CoinShares, Franklin Templeton, WisdomTree, 21Shares, ProShares, RexShares/Rex‑Osprey, and Volatility Shares.

Similar products have also been filed for Cardano (ADA), Avalanche (AVAX), Polkadot (DOT), Aptos (APT), Sui (SUI), and Dogecoin (DOGE), as well as meme coins such as Official Trump (TRUMP) and Bonk (BONK).

Related Articles:

Best Wallet – Diversify Your Crypto Portfolio

• Easy to Use, Feature-Driven Crypto Wallet
• Get Early Access to Upcoming Token ICOs
• Multi-Chain, Multi-Wallet, Non-Custodial
• Now On App Store, Google Play
• Stake To Earn Native Token $BEST
• 250,000+ Monthly Active Users