XRP, SUI, and UNI Shine as Crypto Market Takes a Breather Following Rapid Gains

Bitcoin cooled off during U.S. trading hours on Monday, retreating from an earlier push toward $123,000. Despite slipping below $120,000 late in the day and giving back much of its overnight gains, BTC still held onto a modest 0.6% increase over the past 24 hours. Analysts, however, caution that calling a market top is premature.

Ethereum’s ether dropped below the $3,000 mark, while dogecoin (DOGE), Cardano’s ADA, and Stellar’s XLM posted daily declines of roughly 2%-3%.

Amid the mixed performance, several major altcoins stood out. XRP gained 2.5%, SUI surged 10%, and Uniswap’s UNI climbed 6%.

Crypto-related equities also saw some of their morning gains fade. Strategy (MSTR) and Galaxy Digital (GLXY) remained higher by 3%-4%, while Coinbase (COIN) advanced 1.5%.

Following Bitcoin’s 10%-plus rally in under a week—and even steeper moves for some altcoins—markets may now enter a period of consolidation as traders lock in profits and reassess positions.

Still, this stage of the crypto rally appears far from its conclusion, according to Jeff Dorman, Chief Investment Officer at digital asset firm Arca.

In a note to investors on Monday, Dorman referenced crypto analyst Will Clemente’s insights, noting that previous cycle tops—such as those around March 2024’s spot bitcoin ETF frenzy and the December 2024 to January 2025 surge tied to Donald Trump’s election and inauguration—were marked by altcoin derivatives open interest overtaking that of bitcoin.

“The current rally is nowhere near that,” Dorman said.

Trading volumes on both centralized and decentralized exchanges rose 23% week-over-week but remain below levels typically seen during broader market peaks, Dorman added.

Zooming out, Bitcoin’s ascent is driven by concerns over ballooning sovereign debt and investors seeking a hedge against monetary inflation, said Eric Demuth, CEO of European crypto exchange Bitpanda.

Demuth suggested that BTC reaching €200,000 ($233,000) is “certainly a possibility,” though he emphasized that adoption and integration matter more than price milestones.

“What happens when Bitcoin becomes permanently embedded in the portfolios of major investors, in the reserves of sovereign states, and in the infrastructure of global banks?” he said. “Because that’s exactly what’s happening right now.”

Looking further ahead, Demuth projected that Bitcoin’s market capitalization could steadily converge with that of gold, currently valued above $22 trillion—about nine times larger than BTC’s market cap today.