This cycle, several forces conspired against altcoin momentum. The Fed's quantitative tightening squeezed liquidity across risk assets. Token launch platforms like PumpFun, while innovative, flooded the market with low-quality projects chasing quick gains. Venture capital's aggressive capital deployment created unsustainable valuations disconnected from fundamentals. Meanwhile, exchange order flow manipulation added another layer of headwinds—artificial pressure on price discovery. When you stack these together, retail got crushed trying to navigate conflicting signals. The combination of macro headwinds, platform dynamics, and institutional behavior created a perfect storm for altcoin weakness throughout the cycle.