Bitcoin and Ether Gain Amid Altcoin Decline

Bitcoin and ether are the only cryptocurrencies gaining ground as altcoins experience a downturn, highlighting a shift towards larger tokens.

Bitcoin and ether are currently the only cryptocurrencies in the CoinDesk 20 that have registered positive performance, as traders prioritize larger market tokens amidst declining interest in altcoins.

The two largest cryptocurrencies are the only CoinDesk 20 members in positive territory as altcoins fall out of favor.

By Francisco Rodrigues, Omkar Godbole, Shaurya Malwa | Edited by Sheldon Reback Aug 6, 2026, 10:43 a.m. 5 min read

Bitcoin is outperforming the broader crypto market as traders rotate toward large-cap tokens like bitcoin and ether while altcoins see falling open interest and weak momentum.
Derivatives data show a cautiously bullish tilt for bitcoin, with rising futures open interest, steady implied volatility and growing upside options bets, while XRP and SOL face leverage-driven pressure.
NEAR’s new stake-to-compute model ties its token to AI computing power, but analysts say its success hinges on sustained real demand and usage once early incentives and subsidies fade.

Bitcoin has seen a slight increase of approximately 0.9% over the last 24 hours, reaching $64,700, while the broader CoinDesk 20 index has only gained 0.16%. The strength of equity markets, which have recently hit record highs, seems to leave the crypto market relatively unaffected.

Traders are gravitating towards the perceived safety of major tokens, with bitcoin and ether being the only members of the CD20 showing positive movement. Zaheer Ebtikar, chief strategy officer at crypto neobank Plasma, remarked that altcoins are faltering "without aggressive support from bitcoin momentum."

According to Ebtikar, open interest in altcoins has dropped roughly 15% in the past month, whereas bitcoin has increased by about 8%. The Altcoin Season index from CoinMarketCap has also decreased by one point to 42/100.

Ebtikar explained, "Bitcoin's integration into capital markets through ETFs, basis trading, institutional hedging, and collateral means that this flow does not require a rally to validate itself. Conversely, the majority of the altcoin market has not yet made this transition."

This disparity arises because many projects have not clearly articulated how value accumulates, leaving them unable to justify investor interest during market downturns, according to Ebtikar.

In addition, tech stocks have shown some weakness. The Nasdaq 100 index experienced a decline, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average reported increases. This follows Elon Musk's SpaceX revealing its first results since going public in June.

The IPO indicated a significant rise in AI-related capital spending, prompting a 13% drop in shares before the market closed. Many believe that the AI trend has contributed to capital moving away from the crypto market, with its reversal potentially reigniting interest in crypto assets.

Derivatives Positioning

Starting with the good news: The long-short taker volume ratio in the crypto futures market has turned bullish for the first time in a week, with longs making up nearly 52%. Takers are traders who remove liquidity from the order book by transacting at available prices.
BTC open interest ticks up, but sustainability remains the question: BTC's futures open interest has risen to 770K BTC. This level has been reached several times since early June but has typically seen a subsequent drop back to 740K BTC or lower. A sustained increase is necessary to demonstrate restored confidence and a willingness to leverage investments. Other key indicators, such as annualized perpetual funding rates and the 24-hour open interest-adjusted cumulative volume delta, are positive for BTC, suggesting a bullish outlook.
XRP's rising OI alongside falling price: XRP's open interest has climbed by 5% in the last 24 hours to 2.23 billion tokens, even as its price has fallen to $1.04, the lowest figure since early July. This combination of a declining price and increasing open interest suggests market weakness. Given that XRP's perpetual funding rates are negative and its open interest-adjusted cumulative volume delta is among the lowest of major tokens, traders may be preparing for a further price drop.
ETH stays lackluster, SOL leverage unwinds: Ether's open interest remains unimpressive, staying below the 14 million ETH threshold without any signs of improvement or reduction in positions. In contrast, SOL futures have seen a continuous decline in open interest, now at 60.81 million tokens, down from a peak of over 76.5 million tokens on June 24.
Stock-tied perps rank among the most traded contracts: Some of the most actively traded perpetual futures contracts in the past day are linked to stocks such as SNK, SPCX, and SKYHYNIX, placing them alongside crypto leaders BTC and ETH, indicating ongoing demand for trading traditional assets with a crypto twist.
Majors show mixed sentiment on 24-hour CVD: Major cryptocurrencies exhibit varied sentiment, with BTC and ETH showing positive performance in the 24-hour cumulative volume delta, while SUI, XLM, DOGE, AVAX, and XRP lag behind. A positive cumulative volume delta suggests aggressive buying, whereas a negative delta indicates the opposite.
Implied volatility holds steady for BTC and ETH: Bitcoin's implied volatility remains unchanged from Wednesday, with the BVIV index around 36%, a level from which it has historically increased. The same trend applies to the ether index, EVIV.
Options flow shows growing activity in upside bets: In Deribit options, bitcoin's trading volume over 24 hours indicates rising interest in bullish bets at significantly higher strike prices, including $96,000 and $80,000 calls. For ether, the $2,000 call was the most traded option in that timeframe.

Token Talk

NEAR traded at $1.68 on Thursday, experiencing a 1.8% decline over 24 hours after dropping from an intraday high of $1.73. The token has a market cap of $2.19 billion, and its price has not reflected the ecosystem's push towards AI-compute.
NEAR's move into AI-compute staking has raised questions about demand. The network has launched a staking product allowing holders to lock up NEAR to supply computing power for AI applications, linking the token's utility to computational power rather than governance or speculation. Its efficacy depends on real demand, according to Leo Fan, CEO of Cysic.
Credits aren't the same as usage. Stake-to-compute models can provide a clearer economic purpose for tokens, Fan noted, but initial engagement is often driven by incentives, with developers participating primarily for rewards rather than actual need. The real test will be whether this usage persists once incentives normalize.
Watch three things, Fan said. Utilization rates, which measure how much of the staked compute is actively used, workload volume, and whether developers continue to invest after incentives decline. Consistent demand from AI developers will validate this model, while a drop-off as rewards diminish would indicate a temporary trend.
The read applies beyond NEAR. Connecting a token to computing is a significant attempt to shift crypto beyond governance and speculation utility, but its success hinges on actual usage of the computing resources. NEAR serves as a critical case study for others in the AI-crypto intersection.

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