The dominance of Bitcoin (BTC) in the cryptocurrency market has surged to its highest level in three years, exerting renewed pressure on altcoins.

According to data from CoinMarketCap, BTC’s share of the total crypto market cap spiked to 56.3% on April 12, reaching levels not seen since April 2021.

Bitcoin Crash Affects Altcoins

While Bitcoin faced downward price pressure over the weekend, with BTC/USD dropping below $65,300 due to a liquidation cascade, altcoins experienced even greater losses. Many of the top twenty cryptocurrencies, by market cap, plummeted by over 15%.

This significant decline in altcoin prices has led to a shift in market share, with Bitcoin dominating the cryptocurrency market more than it has in recent years.

Bitcoin Dominance Surges

Popular trader and social media influencer Bagsy commented on the impressive rise in BTC dominance, especially considering the continuous influx of new altcoins into the market.

“I don’t typically look at Bitcoin dominance, but the chart is impressive considering the amount of new altcoins birthed into the market every day,” said Bagsy.

Fellow trader Daan Crypto Trades highlighted the disparity in drawdown between BTC and altcoins in recent days, emphasizing the substantial damage inflicted on the altcoin sector.

“The real damage was done in the Altcoin sector which wiped out billions of Open Interest and made for wicks up to 50%,” Daan said.

Despite the recent dominance of BTC, hopes for an “altseason” remain intact among traders. Historically, Bitcoin bull markets have witnessed an initial surge in dominance, followed by a period of consolidation during which altcoins tend to catch up.

Altseason Incoming?

Trader Mikybull Crypto expressed confidence in the potential for an upcoming altseason, suggesting that the current market conditions represent a final shake-off before an explosive upward movement in the altcoin market cap coupled with a downward trend in Bitcoin dominance.

“This is the last shake-off before it rips explosively upward coupled with Bitcoin dominance downward trend.”

Accompanying charts comparing BTC and altcoin dominance were provided, drawing parallels with the end of 2020, when BTC price action had just broken out of its previous trading range below $20,000.

As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, traders closely monitor Bitcoin dominance and altcoin performance to anticipate potential market trends and opportunities for profit.