Asia Market Briefing: Altcoin Rotation Gathers Steam as Bitcoin Cools; Crypto Crime Surges to Record $2.17B

Altcoin Momentum Builds Amid Bitcoin Profit-Taking

As Asian markets opened Friday, Bitcoin (BTC) continued to hold above $120,500, up 1.7% over the past 24 hours, while Ethereum (ETH) extended its upward momentum, climbing 3% and nearing the $3,500 mark.

Analysts at Enflux, a market-making firm, say this dynamic signals an early-stage rotation from BTC into altcoins, particularly ETH, which has historically served as a precursor to broader high-beta rallies. “BTC positioning looks stretched,” the firm noted in a morning update shared with CoinDesk. “This opens the door for speculative flows into meme coins, CeFi tokens, and other risk-on sectors.”

Enflux pointed to outsized moves in assets like Caldera, which surged 90% on the day, alongside rising volumes in Curve and FLOKI, as evidence of renewed risk appetite. XRP is leading this wave, having shattered its previous 2018 peak to top $3.50.

The firm is also tracking ETH bid resilience and growing market depth, suggesting that if the current patterns hold, a full-fledged altcoin rotation could unfold in the coming sessions.

Institutional Flows into ETH Gain Traction

Coinbase and Glassnode’s latest Charting Crypto report echoes Enflux’s thesis. ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded over $1.7 billion in inflows in Q2, reversing losses from the previous quarter.

Coinbase also highlighted a key on-chain milestone: Ethereum’s Net Unrealized Profit/Loss (NUPL) metric flipped from “capitulation” to “optimism,” with 90% of ETH’s circulating supply now in profit—up from just 40% in Q1.

Meanwhile, Ethereum’s layer-2 ecosystem is strengthening, with transaction volumes up 7% and average fees down 39%, signaling growing on-chain efficiency.

Still, Coinbase urged caution: “Only select altcoins may outperform depending on their unique catalysts,” the exchange warned, even as broader rotation dynamics accelerate.

Crypto Crime Hits Historic Highs in 2025 Amid North Korea-Linked Mega Hack

According to new data from Chainalysis, 2025 has become the worst year on record for digital asset theft, with over $2.17 billion stolen so far.

A major factor was a single event: a $1.5 billion exploit targeting crypto exchange ByBit, reportedly carried out by North Korean state-affiliated hackers. That breach accounts for nearly 70% of all service-related losses year-to-date and has dramatically reshaped the crypto security landscape.

What’s more alarming is the pace: it took just 142 days in 2025 to surpass the $2 billion mark—far quicker than the 214 days it took in 2022, the previous record-setting year for crypto crime.

Chainalysis also highlighted a shift in targets: while centralized exchanges remain in the crosshairs, over 23% of thefts in 2025 involved personal wallets. Criminals are increasingly deploying AI-powered phishing attacks and social engineering tactics to exploit individuals rather than institutions.

Physical threats are rising too. The firm recorded a surge in violent “wrench attacks”—cases where criminals use coercion or force to extract access to wallets. These incidents appear to spike during BTC rallies, reflecting opportunistic targeting in bull markets.

With $8.5 billion in stolen assets from individual wallets still circulating on-chain, Chainalysis warns the second half of 2025 could bring more sophisticated and violent attacks unless better security measures are urgently adopted.

Market Snapshot

• BTC: Up 1.7% to $120,500+ on reports President Trump may sign an executive order enabling crypto investments in 401(k) retirement accounts.
• ETH: Up 3.1% to $3,477.70, gaining strength on ETF inflows and the GENIUS Act’s push for crypto infrastructure.
• XRP: Surged past $3.50, breaking its 2018 all-time high as traders rotate into large-cap alts.
• Gold: Down 1% to ~$3,315 as strong U.S. retail and jobless data lift the dollar and weigh on non-yielding assets.
• Nikkei 225: Closed Thursday up 0.075% at 39,931.16, with a 0.3% gain early Friday pushing it past the 40,000 mark.
• S&P 500: Closed at a record high, alongside the Nasdaq, as U.S. equities continued their strong July performance.