Altcoin momentum has broadened, with TOTAL3—the cryptocurrency market-capitalization index excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum—rising above $800 billion, its highest level since early 2026 and roughly eight months ago. The measure also exceeded its previous peak in May. Bitcoin has remained between $75,600 and $82,000, while altcoins accounted for 53% of Binance trading activity and about 70% of Binance-listed altcoins moved back above their 200-day moving averages. Darkfost said altcoins' relative strength had reached levels comparable to the market top in October 2025, though conditions could change quickly. The rotation was reflected in Sept. 19 trading, when Bitcoin rose 5.71% to $81,277.95, Ethereum gained 6.43% to $2,618.44, XRP advanced 8.77% to $1.42 and Solana climbed 10.66% to $113.56. Avalanche, Dogecoin and several other major tokens also rose, while Pieverse led the 100 largest cryptocurrencies with a 34.29% gain. The previous day's Bitcoin rally triggered $198 million in liquidations in one hour, including $190 million in short positions, as several altcoins posted larger percentage gains. On-chain indicators remain mixed. Wallets holding 10 to 10,000 BTC have sold about 57,600 Bitcoin since Aug. 5 as smaller investors accumulated, a pattern Santiment analyst Brian said could increase the risk of a pullback. Zcash, Uniswap and Hyperliquid have outperformed Bitcoin and Ethereum over the past week, while AI and big-data tokens have seen stronger trading activity. Santiment is also monitoring memecoin volume as a contrarian indicator and said overall sentiment has cooled to neutral. The SEC's novelty waiver plan allowing tokenized stock trading for five years has added to expectations that regulatory developments could support blockchain infrastructure demand.