2026-01-21 03:34:47

The era of making big money with altcoins, simply put, is when there are many people and lots of money. Back then, no matter what project it was, institutions dared to invest hundreds of thousands or millions of USDT, and retail investors followed suit, pouring in massive funds, naturally causing explosive growth.

Now it's different. Market participants' mindsets have changed. Smart post-00s focus on order book manipulation, cash-strapped retail investors are still gambling for a turnaround, and market whales are changing addresses repeatedly to harvest profits. The quality of buy orders has declined, and the willingness of large funds to enter has weakened. Without that kind of blind collective faith, it’s hard to spark waves of hype driven by information asymmetry and emotions.

This actually reflects the market's rationalization—at least on the surface.

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WinterWarmthCat

· 3h ago

It's called rationalization in a nice way, but actually it just means running out of money. --- The methods of cutting leeks have been played out, now it's all about acting skills. --- That group of institutions has long since run away, now they're just putting on a double act. --- The real issue is the small size of the market; who still plays the information gap game with you? --- Post-00s are indeed ruthless, much smarter than we were back in the day. --- The biggest heartbreak is when large funds refuse to enter, it shows they've seen everything clearly. --- The retail investors who have awakened are still dreaming, which is the most ironic. --- Rather than calling it rationalization, it's more like everyone is just scared. --- One track dies, and there's always a new leek field waiting. --- The era of institutions pouring money in is gone; this market has become a chicken rib.

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MetaMaximalist

· 7h ago

ngl the "market rationalization" thesis here is pretty surface-level... we're just seeing adoption curve maturation + institutional risk repricing tbh. the real shift isn't rationality, it's that the network effects became commoditized.

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MidsommarWallet

· 7h ago

That's right, the cost of cutting leeks now is indeed high. In the past, even a crappy project could skyrocket.

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ser_we_are_early

· 7h ago

Well said. Now even cutting leeks has to involve technical skills. The veteran leeks are still waiting for a turnaround, while the new leeks have already learned to fight back. Really, a market without consensus is like this; no matter how good the stories are, they can't be sustained. This wave of rationality is actually rationality born from being cut, haha. Once institutions withdraw, it's over; no matter how retail investors hustle, they can't stir up waves. With fewer people and less money, the era of altcoins has indeed passed.

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FOMOSapien

· 7h ago

Basically, it's that more and more players have no money, and there are also more people wanting to take advantage. Who's going to step in and take over?

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ApeDegen

· 7h ago

No problem with that. Now, there's no longer that collective frenzy; everyone has become too cautious. Institutions have backed off, retail investors don't have that much money anymore, how can they be chopped? The days when even a crappy project could surge dozens of times last year are probably gone. Market rationalization? Or maybe it's just that there's no money left, haha. Those still fighting in altcoins are truly brave warriors.

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SchroedingerMiner

· 7h ago

Basically, no one is foolish anymore. Back then, it was all mindless stacking. Now, you really need to study the market. What rationalization? I think it's simply because there are no more chives to harvest. Wait, did the institutions really withdraw or are they just changing tactics to continue the scam? Who took the biggest loss this round? You should ask the guys in the neighboring group. The current market is just being drained; without new inflows, there's no explosive growth. The logic checks out. The era of mindless FOMO is indeed over, but greed is still here.

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