The arrival of an altcoin season is often tied to Bitcoin's performance.

As money flows out of BTC and into altcoins, this triggers a rise in altcoin prices.

The arrival of an altcoin season is often tied to Bitcoin’s performance. As money flows out of BTC and into altcoins, this triggers a rise in altcoin prices.

However, this cycle is being delayed by factors beyond Bitcoin. One such factor is the recent surge in token generation events (TGEs).

Rise in TGEs – A Boon or a Bane?

In the past four and a half months, 45 new tokens have launched, with most failing to provide decent returns. Many tokens launched in 2025 failed to sustain growth post-listing, which begs the question of whether this trend is driven by bearish macroeconomic conditions or the lack of fundamental value in these tokens. This is turning altcoins into momentum-driven speculative assets.

Talking to BeInCrypto, Vincent Liu, CIO of Kronos Research, elaborated on this question.

“Relentless token launches, especially meme coins, diluted liquidity and fragmented investor attention. Simultaneously, macro headwinds like rising interest rates and a global shift to risk-off sentiment throttled speculative capital. Tokens lacking utility, clear roadmaps, or sustainable ecosystems were quickly reprieved in line with growing investor skepticism,” Liu said.

However, of the few successful launches that did provide a strong return on investment (ROI), there was a surprising performance from Solayer (LAYER). Since its February launch, LAYER has seen an 88% rise and is currently trading just under $2.00.

Altcoin Season Index Remains in Bitcoin’s Favor

The altcoin season index currently stands at 16, indicating that Bitcoin is still largely in the lead. Rapid token launches and post-listing failures are contributing to this delay.

suggest that there needs to be reforms in the way that token launches are approached.

“The issue of artificially inflated token prices before launch presents a growing concern. While these short-term surges might attract initial attention, they often undermine long-term investor confidence. To mitigate this, the industry must champion greater transparency around partner agreements, listing criteria, and pre-launch disclosures. Clear communication about a project’s structure, roadmap, and market cap expectations is essential to building a sustainable and trustworthy ecosystem.

“Finally, investors themselves play a crucial role. By conducting thorough research into the fundamentals of new projects, investors can protect themselves from significant losses and identify valuable tokens in the long run. This includes evaluating the team behind the project, the token’s economics, and the project’s overall market fit. In essence, a new token's success depends not only on the project itself but also on how it navigates the broader macroeconomic landscape and investor sentiment.”

This point was raised by Arthur Cheong, founder and CEO of DeFiance Capital, who recently expressed concerns over TGEs. He highlighted the risk of projects and market makers working together to inflate token prices artificially. This can distort market behavior and undermine investor confidence.

“You don’t know whether the price is a result of organic demand and supply or simply due to projects and market makers colluding to fix the apex for other objectives. Absolutely bizarre that CEXs are turning a blind eye to this and altcoin markets are becoming more and more like a lemon market where confidence gets lesser.

Responding to this,suggest that there needs to be reforms in the way that token launches are approached.