TL;DR
- Altcoins could see a strong rally in Q2 2025 due to clearer and more favorable regulations, according to Swiss bank Sygnum.
- Bitcoin’s dominance is expected to decline as other cryptocurrencies gain traction among users and projects with solid economic strategies.
- Emerging protocols like Toncoin, Sui, and Berachain are leading new adoption strategies, while memecoins continue to attract retail investor attention.
Despite Bitcoin recently reaching its highest dominance level in four years, there are clear signs that this leadership might begin to weaken in the coming months. According to the latest investment outlook report from Sygnum, one of the world’s most respected crypto-friendly banks, altcoins are set to take center stage in the second quarter of 2025. The reason? A significant improvement in the regulatory environment and a growing focus on real economic value by the market, which could reshape the current structure of the crypto landscape at a faster pace than expected.
Clear Regulations and New Opportunities for Altcoins
Sygnum highlights that although regulatory advances have yet to be reflected in market prices, they represent a solid foundation for a potential rally in the altcoin sector. For example, in the United States, major developments are underway, including the establishment of a “Digital Asset Stockpile” under the Trump administration and new legislation targeting stablecoins, which could pave the way for broader adoption.
According to Sygnum, these changes will particularly benefit projects that manage to capture real user engagement, moving away from mere technical promises. Protocols like Sui, Sonic, and Berachain are experimenting with innovative models, from rewarding developers who attract active users to incentivizing validators to engage with DeFi applications.
Emerging Protocols and Memecoins: Two Parallel Narratives
While institutional attention is shifting toward assets with strong fundamentals, such as differentiated layer-1 and layer-2 solutions, the retail public remains deeply engaged with memecoins. CoinGecko recently reported that, in Q1 2025, memecoins accounted for over 27% of global crypto interest, ranking just behind AI-related tokens.
However, professional investors are taking a different path: asset manager Bitwise reported that more than 12 publicly traded companies added Bitcoin to their reserves during the first quarter, bringing total public firm holdings to $57 billion.
Still, the market’s message is simple, those who manage to balance innovation, utility, and community will become the new leaders. With new rules of the game and rising competition, altcoins might be closer than ever to overtaking the once untouchable king—Bitcoin. The landscape is evolving rapidly, and investors will have to stay alert to spot the next big breakthrough.