Today’s market was led by underdog altcoins stealing the spotlight with double-digit gains, while meme coins and older projects took a hit. As bull whispers grow louder on Crypto Twitter, we explore the biggest movers and the market mechanics behind them.
- Decred (DCR) is up 22.45%, leading momentum-driven altcoin moves
- Meme tokens like APEPE and PIPPIN are faltering, reflecting sector rotation
- Arbitrage spreads widening across secondary centralized exchanges
- Rising interest in governance and privacy-focused coins like DCR
- Smart money favoring low float, undervalued infrastructure tokens
If you blinked, you may have missed Decred (DCR) doing its best imitation of a rocket ship. DCR surged 22.45% over the last 24 hours, closing out a strong session where it decisively led the altcoin charge. Not far behind were RIVER (+13.71%) and PUMP (+13.24%), both of which rode waves of momentum that carried over from niche trader circles on Twitter and Telegram.
Meanwhile, the biggest loser on the day was Vision (VSN), down 9.67%. While no fundamental news accompanied the dump, traders pointed to a whale-sized selloff seen on Binance’s order books earlier this morning. That, combined with lack of liquidity, pushed the token into freefall territory by midday.
Beyond individual coin action, there’s a whiff of optimism brewing in the broader crypto market. Bitcoin continued to flirt with the $41K resistance, encouraging swing trades and a mild resurgence in altcoin rotations. In particular, the outperformance of smaller-cap coins like FF (+11.63%) and AXS (+10.86%) signals that traders are rotating risk away from majors and into high-beta plays.
This classic “altseason-lite” behavior is worth noting: we often see niche tokens outperform when BTC trades sideways or consolidates around key technical levels. Decred’s move, in particular, is likely a combination of its hybrid PoW/PoS model drawing attention amidst the reinvigorated interest in decentralized governance models—all echoing through the halls of Twitter Spaces and Discord groups.
The social signals can’t be ignored today. Crypto Twitter is unusually excited for a Monday, and it seems sentiment is shifting positively, especially among altcoin-focused accounts. @AltcoinThor tweeted, “Seeing $DCR run like this reminds me of the 2020 cycle. Cap under a billion, but liquidity depth on exchanges looks decent. Watching for $25 breakout,” which garnered nearly 2,500 likes. Meanwhile, NFT communities are unusually mum—possibly a sign of sector rotation out of JPEGs and into more liquid speculative swings.
Another trend emerging across social is interest in “fourth-tier” memecoins, exemplified by today’s loser APEPE (-4.85%). After massive runs in December, the meme asset bubble is deflating slightly as trader fatigue sets in and flows head toward small-cap infrastructure and DeFi plays. Think of it as meme detox with a DeFi chaser.
From an HFT and market structure perspective, this is exactly the kind of fragmented liquidity game we love to see. Market makers are adjusting spreads aggressively today, particularly in pairs like DCR/USDT and PUMP/ETH, where slippage sensitivity has increased due to thinner books. That suggests retail is back—and may be foaming slightly at the mouth.
Arbitrageurs also found alpha today between centralized exchange listings for tokens like FF, which saw a 3.2% intraday discrepancy between KuCoin and Bitget—a juicy opportunity for traders equipped with low-latency infrastructure.
We also saw some front-running activity on-chain for smaller memecoins like PIPPIN (-7.73%), which might explain the sharp correction during early Asian hours as MEV bots jumped liquidity queues across Solana DEXes.
Protocols with ongoing development chatter or low circulating supply seem to be the hotbed of smart money flow. With DCR, multiple reports on Reddit and Bitcointalk hinted at an upcoming privacy feature update. Combine that with dormant wallets suddenly reactivating, and you’ve got the recipe for a speculative breakout that feeds itself.
In contrast, projects like SENT (-5.54%) and QRL (-5.15%) appear to be paying the price for aging tech and inactive dev GitHubs. As always, crypto remains a momentum game—and projects that fail to stir up narrative catalysts get swept aside in these churn-heavy market phases.
Today’s winners weren’t the predictable blue-chips. Instead, gains clustered tightly around earlier-stage or overlooked projects—suggesting that alt-season whispers may not just be hot air. Traders, both retail and institutional, are sniffing out momentum plays, hungry for asymmetric upside after a sleepy December. It’s a pattern that harkens back to late Q1 2021, and if today is a preview, this could be a spicy February.
Keep your bots warm, your alerts tighter, and your market depth trackers handy. The altcoin herd is on the move again—and this time, it’s not just Elon making the charts dance.
If you blinked, you may have missed Decred (DCR) doing its best imitation of a rocket ship. DCR surged 22.45% over the last 24 hours, closing out a strong session where it decisively led the altcoin charge. Not far behind were RIVER (+13.71%) and PUMP (+13.24%), both of which rode waves of momentum that carried over from niche trader circles on Twitter and Telegram.
Meanwhile, the biggest loser on the day was Vision (VSN), down 9.67%. While no fundamental news accompanied the dump, traders pointed to a whale-sized selloff seen on Binance’s order books earlier this morning. That, combined with lack of liquidity, pushed the token into freefall territory by midday.
Beyond individual coin action, there’s a whiff of optimism brewing in the broader crypto market. Bitcoin continued to flirt with the $41K resistance, encouraging swing trades and a mild resurgence in altcoin rotations. In particular, the outperformance of smaller-cap coins like FF (+11.63%) and AXS (+10.86%) signals that traders are rotating risk away from majors and into high-beta plays.
This classic “altseason-lite” behavior is worth noting: we often see niche tokens outperform when BTC trades sideways or consolidates around key technical levels. Decred’s move, in particular, is likely a combination of its hybrid PoW/PoS model drawing attention amidst the reinvigorated interest in decentralized governance models—all echoing through the halls of Twitter Spaces and Discord groups.
The social signals can’t be ignored today. Crypto Twitter is unusually excited for a Monday, and it seems sentiment is shifting positively, especially among altcoin-focused accounts. @AltcoinThor tweeted, “Seeing $DCR run like this reminds me of the 2020 cycle. Cap under a billion, but liquidity depth on exchanges looks decent. Watching for $25 breakout,” which garnered nearly 2,500 likes. Meanwhile, NFT communities are unusually mum—possibly a sign of sector rotation out of JPEGs and into more liquid speculative swings.
Another trend emerging across social is interest in “fourth-tier” memecoins, exemplified by today’s loser APEPE (-4.85%). After massive runs in December, the meme asset bubble is deflating slightly as trader fatigue sets in and flows head toward small-cap infrastructure and DeFi plays. Think of it as meme detox with a DeFi chaser.
From an HFT and market structure perspective, this is exactly the kind of fragmented liquidity game we love to see. Market makers are adjusting spreads aggressively today, particularly in pairs like DCR/USDT and PUMP/ETH, where slippage sensitivity has increased due to thinner books. That suggests retail is back—and may be foaming slightly at the mouth.
Arbitrageurs also found alpha today between centralized exchange listings for tokens like FF, which saw a 3.2% intraday discrepancy between KuCoin and Bitget—a juicy opportunity for traders equipped with low-latency infrastructure.
We also saw some front-running activity on-chain for smaller memecoins like PIPPIN (-7.73%), which might explain the sharp correction during early Asian hours as MEV bots jumped liquidity queues across Solana DEXes.
Protocols with ongoing development chatter or low circulating supply seem to be the hotbed of smart money flow. With DCR, multiple reports on Reddit and Bitcointalk hinted at an upcoming privacy feature update. Combine that with dormant wallets suddenly reactivating, and you’ve got the recipe for a speculative breakout that feeds itself.
In contrast, projects like SENT (-5.54%) and QRL (-5.15%) appear to be paying the price for aging tech and inactive dev GitHubs. As always, crypto remains a momentum game—and projects that fail to stir up narrative catalysts get swept aside in these churn-heavy market phases.
Today’s winners weren’t the predictable blue-chips. Instead, gains clustered tightly around earlier-stage or overlooked projects—suggesting that alt-season whispers may not just be hot air. Traders, both retail and institutional, are sniffing out momentum plays, hungry for asymmetric upside after a sleepy December. It’s a pattern that harkens back to late Q1 2021, and if today is a preview, this could be a spicy February.
Keep your bots warm, your alerts tighter, and your market depth trackers handy. The altcoin herd is on the move again—and this time, it’s not just Elon making the charts dance.
Decred (DCR) made headlines today with a spike exceeding 22%—its breakout comes just as rumors of a privacy tech update began circulating in major forums. On the flip side, Vision (VSN) saw a heavy dump following suspected whale exits without any fundamental news, rattling fragile weekend liquidity.
Use thin liquidity on high-performing altcoins to your advantage by placing limit orders just outside the spread. Monitor on-chain activity for early signals of narrative shifts—especially wallets with long dormancy suddenly activating.
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