A Minute’s Silence For Altcoins as Bitcoin Highs Slice Value Across Markets

Bitcoin’s rise over $7,200 Thursday has piled pressure on already sidelined altcoin markets, leading many into freefall.

An analysis of Coinmarketcap’s top 20 altcoin listings shows a depressing picture as Bitcoin’s surge leaves many struggling to stay above multi-month lows.

Notable standouts are the Bitcoin Cash fork and controversial newcomer BitConnect, opportunistically riding enthusiasm surrounding the Bitcoin Core chain.

Altcoin losses extend to Ethereum, which lost over six percent in 24 hours, while fellow fork Ethereum Classic (ETC) dropped to its lowest BTC and USD price since May.

Bitcoin meanwhile is posting highs elsewhere, its market dominance reaching 62.4 percent – a climb of 2.2 percent in the past day.

Wall Street news propulsion and feverish activity prior to the SegWit2x hard fork are combining to increase market focus solely on BTC, with an altcoin resurgence failing to materialize since August.

Broad consensus suggests the return of alt markets must wait until after the hard fork. Bitcoin itself, however, could pull back sooner, with Cointelegraph reporting analyst Tone Vays today warning of an “inevitable pullback” towards $5,000.