Altcoins Near All-Time Lows: CryptoQuant 38% vs Post-FTX – March 2026

Altcoins near all-time lows have climbed to roughly 38%–38.8% of the market, according to CryptoQuant analysis published in early March 2026. CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost says the share now exceeds the post-FTX peak of 37.8% from November 2022, framing it as broad, cycle-level capitulation rather than isolated weakness.

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Context

Altcoins near all-time lows tend to spike when liquidity concentrates in the most liquid assets and the long tail loses bid support. That dynamic usually shows up during prolonged drawdowns, when smaller caps struggle to attract fresh risk capital.

Bitcoin also remains well below its October 2025 cycle peak near $126,000, keeping risk appetite tight across crypto. In this environment, “breadth” signals – how many tokens are breaking down together – often matter as much as headline moves in majors.

Details

CryptoQuant’s “altcoins near ATL” metric indicates that about 38% of tracked altcoins are trading close to their historical lows, with some summaries citing 38.8%. The same reports anchor the comparison point at 37.8% during the post-FTX capitulation window in November 2022, which the current reading has now surpassed.

Darkfost summed up the message in a direct statement shared alongside the chart: “This metric shows how much altcoins are still under pressure. In fact, this represents the largest regression of altcoins observed during this cycle.” – Darkfost, Analyst, CryptoQuant, March 3, 2026.

The takeaway is straightforward: the market is seeing a larger share of altcoins pinned near their worst historical prices than it did in the immediate aftermath of FTX. That makes this episode notable as a breadth event, not just a single-coin story.

Impact

A high-30% “near ATL” reading implies that sell pressure is widespread across altcoins, not limited to a few failed projects. When that many assets trade near historical lows at once, liquidity and volatility risk typically rise, especially in smaller names where order books can thin out quickly.

Capital concentration shows up in dominance metrics as well. CoinMarketCap’s dominance widget showed Bitcoin at 59.0% at the time of review (the page did not display a timestamp), consistent with narratives of investors clustering in BTC versus the long tail.

At the same time, not every crypto activity metric mirrors price weakness one-for-one. DeFiLlama’s dashboard snapshot showed Total Value Locked at $99.955 billion and 24-hour DEX volume at $9.845 billion, suggesting large parts of DeFi liquidity and usage remain material even as many tokens sit near their lows.

Next Steps

CryptoQuant’s metric updates with market prices, so there is no fixed date for when this regime ends. What changes the signal is breadth improvement – fewer coins printing fresh lows – and clearer evidence that liquidity is rotating back into higher-beta segments.

Some market briefs interpret extreme readings like this as conditions that can precede rebounds, but that framing depends on confirmation from price action and breadth, not a single data point. A practical approach is to separate assets near ATL due to structural issues from those pulled down by broad risk-off pressure, because their recovery paths often diverge.

A parallel summary from market coverage captured the breadth aspect succinctly: “At current levels, roughly 38% of altcoins are trading near their historical lows – marking the most severe regression observed during this cycle.” – Sebastian Villafuerte, Analyst/Writer, NewsBTC, March 4, 2026.

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P.S. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always conduct your own research and make independent decisions.