Bitcoin holds long-term support as dominance rises, altcoins stay near multi- 
year lows and total crypto market cap edges up, signaling stabilization not 
breakout yet. The cryptocurrency market posted gains as Bitcoin maintained 
stability above key support levels, reducing immediate downside…

Bitcoin dominance climbs as altcoins lag near multi-year lows

Ethereum co‑founder Vitalik Buterin says the latest upgrades give the 
blockchain high‑bandwidth, consensus‑driven performance. Vitalik Buterin 
announced that zero‑knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machines have reached 
production‑quality performance and that PeerDAS data‑availability sampling is 
live on mainnet, combining to give Ethereum decentralized consensus and high 
bandwidth. He contrasted this with earlier peer‑to‑peer models such as 
Bittorrent’s bandwidth‑heavy, consensus‑free design […]

Vitalik Buterin: Ethereum’s New Architecture Solves Scalability Trilemma

The memecoin market went through a brutal reset in 2025, marking one of its 
sharpest downturns since the sector became a dominant force within crypto 
speculation. Following the euphoric memecoin mania that peaked and ultimately 
collapsed in November 2024, selling pressure steadily took control. Liquidity 
dried up, momentum faded, and most memecoins entered prolonged drawdowns that 
significantly underperformed the broader market. Related Reading: Bitcoin Data 
Shows Aggressive Sellers In Control As BTC Consolidates Below $90K As risk 
appetite weakened, memecoin dominance within the altcoin market continued to 
erode throughout the year. By December 2025, this dominance fell to a 
historical low, reflecting widespread capitulation among retail participants 
and a clear shift away from high-beta speculative assets. Many traders exited 
positions entirely, reinforcing the narrative that the memecoin cycle had 
fully played out. However, extreme pessimism often marks important turning 
points. According to an analysis by Darkfost from CryptoQuant, the current 
compression in memecoin dominance closely mirrors prior structural lows 
observed in past cycles. Notably, the last time memecoin dominance reached 
comparable levels, it occurred shortly before a powerful resurgence in the 
sector, driven by renewed liquidity, fresh narratives, and aggressive 
speculative flows. Memecoin Dominance Shows Early Signs of Stabilization 
Recent on-chain analysis highlights how far the memecoin sector has fallen 
relative to the broader altcoin market—and why some investors are starting to 
pay attention again. According to Darkfost’s framework, the key ratio compares 
the combined market capitalization of major memecoins against that of leading 
altcoins. At the height of the speculative frenzy in November 2024, this ratio 
climbed to roughly 0.11, meaning memecoins represented about 11% of total 
altcoin market value. That level reflected peak enthusiasm, heavy retail 
participation, and aggressive risk-taking. By December 2025, however, the same 
ratio had collapsed to around 0.032. In practical terms, memecoins had lost 
nearly two-thirds of their relative weight within the altcoin universe. This 
sharp contraction aligns with prolonged underperformance, capital rotation 
into larger assets, and widespread capitulation after months of declining 
prices. Importantly, recent price action suggests the bleeding may be slowing. 
Over the past several days, some of the largest memecoins have posted notable 
rebounds, hinting at renewed speculative interest. While this move is far too 
early to confirm a full trend reversal, it does suggest that selling pressure 
is no longer one-sided. For now, the data points to a tentative stabilization 
phase rather than a confirmed memecoin season. Still, for high-risk investors, 
such deeply compressed relative valuations have historically preceded sharp, 
sentiment-driven rallies—provided risk is managed carefully and expectations 
remain realistic. Related Reading: Altcoin Season Setup Advances: CEX Volume 
Hits Cycle Highs Despite Price Weakness Technical Rebound After A Prolonged 
Downtrend The memecoin market cap chart shows a clear shift in structure after 
months of sustained weakness. Throughout the second half of 2025, total 
memecoin capitalization trended decisively lower, forming a sequence of lower 
highs and lower lows while remaining capped below the 50-day and 100-day 
moving averages. However, recent price action suggests the first meaningful 
attempt at stabilization. The market cap has rebounded sharply from the 
December lows near the $35–38 billion zone and is now trading back above the 
short-term moving average, reclaiming the $46 billion area. This move is 
accompanied by a noticeable pickup in volume, indicating renewed participation 
rather than a purely technical bounce on thin liquidity. Related Reading: 
Ethereum Liquidity Rebuilds On Binance: December Inflows Signal Strategic 
Repositioning Despite this improvement, the broader trend remains cautious. 
The memecoin market cap is still trading below the longer-term moving 
averages, which continue to slope downward and act as overhead resistance 
around the $50–55 billion range. This suggests that while downside momentum 
has slowed, the market has not yet transitioned into a confirmed uptrend. In 
practical terms, the chart points to a relief rally within a broader bearish 
structure. For memecoins to regain sustained momentum, the market would need 
to consolidate above current levels and reclaim higher moving averages. 
Signaling that speculative capital is returning with conviction rather than 
opportunism. Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com

Memecoin Strength Returns After Historic Market Decline: A Setup For A Comeback?

Shiba Inu (SHIB) has ridden a fresh wave of speculative buying this week, with 
the token jumping nearly 20% while the broader meme coin sector surged. 
Related Reading: $18 Million Ethereum Loss Sends Whale Running To Gold 
According to Santiment, total meme coin valuation rose by about 23% over the 
period as traders piled back into higher-risk tokens. Trading volumes jumped 
from $2.16 billion to roughly $8.6 billion, a near 300% increase that shows 
how fast money rotated into this corner of the market. Supply Concentration 
Raises Eyebrows Reports have disclosed that supply remains highly concentrated 
among a handful of wallets. The top 10 holders control over 60% of SHIB’s 
maximum supply, which equals around 1 quadrillion tokens. 🐶📈 Meme coins, the 
most &#8220;speculative&#8221; of assets, have proceeded with their post-holiday run. The 
entire meme market cap is now above $45.3B, growing by +20.8% in just the past 
week. 📊 Notable 7-day gainers include: 🪙 $PEPE +54% 🪙 $USELESS +54% 🪙 $MOG 
+38% 🪙 $DOG +36% 🪙… pic.twitter.com/htdfiXLaLf — Santiment (@santimentfeed) 
January 4, 2026 Those wallets together hold about 630 trillion SHIB. Based on 
Santiment’s figures, the official burn wallet alone holds roughly 40% of the 
total supply, a stake valued at over $3 billion. This kind of concentration 
can magnify price swings if large holders move coins onto exchanges or sell. 
Technical Setup Points To A Test Analyst Charting Guy flagged the token’s 
weekly chart as &#8220;looking good&#8221; in a January 4 tweet, noting a strong weekly 
candle that closed up 22%. Based on reports, SHIB started 2026 at $0.000006904 
and has since pushed higher. $SHIB weekly looks good 
pic.twitter.com/YigTTQ3kEW — Charting Guy (@ChartingGuy) January 4, 2026 The 
meme coin briefly traded above $0.0000093 before a pullback and is currently 
around $0.000008766. Year-to-date gains sit near 32% and the token was up 
5.14% over the past 24 hours and 17.31% over the last week. Charting Guy’s 
chart shows SHIB approaching the tip of a long-running descending trendline 
that traces back to a high of $0.0000334 in December 2024. A break above that 
line would raise the chance of a larger move higher. Meme Coins See Wide Gains 
Other tokens have also posted big moves. Dogecoin recorded about a 20% rise 
while Pepe surged roughly 65% over the same span. The group’s sharp gains came 
as speculative interest accelerated and traders chased short-term returns. 
Related Reading: A Maduro Bet, A Market Alarm: US Lawmaker Targets Trading 
Abuses Market Volume And Trader Behavior Santiment’s data highlights that 
trading activity spiked dramatically, signaling a swift return of hot money to 
meme coins. The jump from $2.17 billion to $8.7 billion in daily traded value 
shows more participants are active and willing to take bigger risks. Based on 
the mix of heavy supply concentration and a crowded technical setup, Shiba 
Inu’s path could widen in either direction. A decisive breakout above the 
descending trendline might extend last week’s rally, while heavy selling from 
large wallets could trigger sharp pullbacks. Featured image from Gemini, chart 
from TradingView

Shiba Inu’s 20% Pop Signals Meme Coin Revival – Details

January’s unlock calendar is heavily concentrated, with four major projects 
accounting for more than one-third of all tokens set to enter circulation.

Cryptocurrency price in VEF