Crypto Market Pulse — November 28, 2025: Leaning Toward Bitcoin, Select Altcoins Rally

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#crypto-analysis #market-report #daily-analysis #defi #bitcoin #ethereum #altcoins #layer-1
Crypto Market Pulse — November 28, 2025: Leaning Toward Bitcoin, Select Altcoins Rally

Executive Summary

The crypto market capped off the day with modest net gains and concentrated strength among small- and mid-cap tokens. Total market capitalization sits at $3.21T while Bitcoin dominance remains elevated at 56.9%, constraining broad-based altcoin upside even as pockets of speculative buying pushed several low-liquidity names sharply higher.

Market Overview

Total Market Cap: $3.21T — a market-size that continues to reflect growing institutional and retail participation across spot, derivatives and tokenized assets.
Bitcoin Dominance: 56.9% — a high dominance reading that implies capital is disproportionately allocated to Bitcoin relative to altcoins at the moment, limiting the amplitude of an “altseason” absent a meaningful rotation.
Key reference prices: Bitcoin is trading at $91,495 and Ethereum at $3,048.61. These levels serve as the market’s risk anchor, with BTC’s share of market cap continuing to direct sentiment across other asset classes.

Overall, the market landscape today shows selective risk appetite: headline indices remain stable, but volatility and directional moves are concentrated in smaller-cap tokens and specific sectors.

Top Performers

Top Gainer: SQD (SQD) — +52.57% at $0.094189
Other notable winners:

  • Turbo (TURBO): +48.68% at $0.00239154
  • Rekt (REKT): +38.49% at $4.06988e-7
  • Basic Attention (BAT): +23.68% at $0.276725
  • Keeta (KTA): +14.71% at $0.330607

Analysis:

  • The largest percentage moves occurred in low-liquidity, small-cap tokens (SQD, TURBO, REKT). Such moves are commonly driven by concentrated buying, low float, speculative flows, or token-specific announcements and listings. Given the magnitude and concentration of gains, these are likely momentum-driven rallies rather than broad market rotation.
  • BAT’s +23.68% rise, at a materially larger market cap than the microcaps, suggests renewed interest in advertising/attention-layer projects — potentially driven by incremental adoption signals or on-chain activity that re-energized holders and traders.
  • Traders should note that explosive percentage moves in these names often produce sharp intraday reversals; liquidity and slippage are key execution risks.

Market Challenges

Top Losers:

  • Shrepe (SHREPE): -20.37% at $0.368968
  • Concordium (CCD): -15.97% at $0.01573689
  • Humanity (H): -12.10% at $0.117016
  • Fasttoken (FTN): -9.76% at $1.34
  • Telcoin (TEL): -8.60% at $0.00481676

Analysis:

  • Losses are also concentrated among smaller caps and projects with specific token metrics or low liquidity. Shrepe’s drop of over 20% is a reminder that token-specific risks (sell pressure from holders, token unlocks, or negative social sentiment) can overwhelm a stable broader market.
  • Privacy sector underperformance (sector down 1.48%) may have weighed on privacy-focused names; sector-specific headwinds can exacerbate declines for tokens lacking strong on-chain fundamentals or market depth.
  • Investors should be cautious of headline percentage losses in these tokens as they often reflect idiosyncratic supply/demand imbalances rather than systemic market stress.

Sector Analysis

  • DeFi: +1.51% (10 coins tracked) — DeFi showing steady, broad-based gains; incremental demand for yield and on-chain activity likely underpin performance.
  • Meme: +1.58% (5 coins tracked) — Meme tokens continue to capture speculative flows; small sample but notable outperformance versus other speculative categories.
  • AI: +0.67% (9 coins tracked) — Modest gains, indicating incremental interest without broad euphoria.
  • RWA (Real World Assets): +0.94% (8 coins tracked) — Continued, measured inflows into tokenized real-world exposures.
  • Gaming: +0.33% (7 coins tracked) — Flat-to-modestly-positive, implying selective developer/product updates are being priced in.
  • L1: -0.11% (9 coins tracked) and L2: -0.31% (7 coins tracked) — Slight weakness in infrastructure layers relative to DeFi and meme sectors, suggesting capital favored application-level/short-term speculative trades over base-layer accumulation.
  • Privacy: -1.48% (6 coins tracked) — Notable underperformance, likely due to sector-specific regulatory/regime-risk sensitivity and weaker immediate catalysts.

Sector takeaway: Rotations are selective. DeFi and Meme pockets outperformed, while infrastructure layers and privacy-focused assets lagged. This pattern favors event-driven, short-duration trades rather than broad allocation shifts.

Technical Analysis (Qualitative)

  • Momentum: Short-term momentum is concentrated in microcaps; these assets exhibit strong intraday momentum but elevated volatility and risk of rapid reversals.
  • Trend Strength: Bitcoin’s price at $91,495 anchors market structure. With dominance at 56.9%, trend strength in the largest-cap asset is a primary determinant of risk sentiment. Ethereum’s position at $3,048.61 keeps it as the primary altcoin bellwether.
  • Risk Levels: Liquidity risk is elevated for the day’s largest percent movers. Market-wide risk appears moderate — sector dispersion is high, meaning risk is idiosyncratic rather than systemic.
  • Correlation: High Bitcoin dominance tends to compress correlation benefits across alts. Traders seeking alpha should focus on relative strength within sectors and token-specific catalysts rather than assuming broad altcoin catch-up.

(Per the data constraints, explicit numeric support/resistance price levels beyond the provided spot prices are N/A.)

Market Outlook — What to Watch

  • Bitcoin Dominance: At 56.9%, dominance will be a key indicator to monitor. A declining dominance could presage broader altcoin participation; sustained levels near current readings favor BTC/ETH allocation over broad alt exposure.
  • Liquidity Concentration: Watch depth and order-book liquidity in the top movers. Low liquidity environments can both amplify gains and produce severe drawdowns.
  • Sector Rotation: DeFi and Meme strength suggest traders are still favoring yield/playful risk; a switch back to L1/L2 leadership would indicate more structural adoption optimism.
  • Idiosyncratic Events: For microcaps, monitor token unlock schedules, exchange listings/delistings, and social sentiment for quick shifts in direction.
  • Volatility and Positioning: Given elevated short-term dispersion, risk-managed strategies (position sizing, defined stop-losses) and options-based hedges remain prudent for active traders.

Key Takeaways

  • Market size stands at $3.21T with Bitcoin dominance at 56.9%; BTC ($91,495) and ETH ($3,048.61) remain the market anchors.
  • Gains were concentrated: small-cap tokens led the leaderboard (SQD +52.57%, TURBO +48.68%), while several low-liquidity names experienced outsized moves and commensurate risks.
  • DeFi (+1.51%) and Meme (+1.58%) outperformed, while L1 (-0.11%), L2 (-0.31%), and Privacy (-1.48%) lagged — signifying selective, not broad, risk appetite.
  • Actionable guidance: prioritize liquidity and catalyst-based trades, use disciplined risk management on microcap rallies, and watch Bitcoin dominance for signs of a broader altcoin rotation.

Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Cryptocurrency investments are volatile and risky; conduct your own research and consider consulting a licensed professional before making investment decisions.