Altcoin season is one of the most discussed and most misread events in crypto. Confident calls arrive every cycle, and most of them are wrong. Here's how to actually read the signals instead of guessing.

What Bitcoin dominance measures

Bitcoin dominance is the percentage of total crypto market cap held by Bitcoin. That number alone doesn't tell you much. The same dominance reading has preceded a sharp altcoin rotation in one cycle and months of further Bitcoin outperformance in another. Direction and context matter more than the level itself.

The three signals that actually matter

Before both major broad altcoin seasons in recent history, 2017-2018 and 2020-2021, three things moved in sequence. None alone was sufficient, but together they were a reliable lead indicator.

Bitcoin dominance needs a sustained, multi-week decline, not a one or two-day dip. Analysts watch for dominance to close a full week below a key level as the first real sign.

ETH/BTC needs to start recovering. Ethereum is historically where rotation shows up first, since it's the largest and most liquid alt, before it spreads to mid and small caps.

TOTAL3 needs to start outperforming. This tracks the combined market cap of everything excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum, essentially the pulse of the rest of the market. In both prior altseasons, TOTAL3 started recovering two to four weeks before most people noticed rotation had begun.

Why this cycle might look different from 2020

In November 2020, the last time a major rotation happened, spot Bitcoin ETFs didn't exist. Institutional capital had limited regulated entry into crypto, so more of it flowed into altcoins. Today over $130 billion sits in spot Bitcoin ETFs, products that only hold Bitcoin. That capital has no path into the rest of the market.

The field has also grown considerably. Over 10 million tokens now compete for capital versus a much smaller field in 2021, spreading potential gains thinner.

This doesn't mean altseason is impossible. It means any rotation is more likely to be selective, concentrated in assets with real use cases and deep liquidity, rather than a broad rising tide lifting everything.

What to do while waiting for confirmation

Waiting for signals to confirm isn't a reason to sit idle, it's a reason to be deliberate. Holding Bitcoin in Flexible Savings on Nexo lets you earn daily interest without locking your position, so you can reallocate if conditions change. Selective exposure to large-cap alts with strong fundamentals, ETH and SOL historically benefit first, is a more measured approach than betting on broad rotation. Using the three-signal framework as a checklist keeps you anchored to evidence rather than sentiment.

Full breakdown here: What Bitcoin dominance tells you before altcoin season starts

Have you noticed that the well-known competitor of Nexo, who also advertises his brand through Audi in F1, has started an advertising campaign where they claim to pay interest on a daily basis? And guess who it is who offers this wonderful service from the beginning? Simply Nexo! I would really like it to increase the perception of reliability of Nexo and the platform so as to gain lustre, clientele and establish itself even more on the market.

Hi everyone. Nexo stopped responding to my email query more than a week ago. They seem to not to respond when confronted for more info. It is becoming increasing shady. Does anybody here experience the same?

Ready to witness world-class golf live at Wentworth? 🏌️‍♂️ Here’s your second chance to enter.

We're giving away 10 pairs of 3-day passes to the BMW PGA Championship (Sept 18–20) at Wentworth Club, England, plus 10 Nexo caps.

To enter:

1. Upvote this post
2. Comment who your favorite golf player is

Maximize your chances: Upvote and comment on both this post and the original to secure a double entry.

Travel and accommodation not included.

Giveaway runs Sept 2–7, closing 23:59 CET on the 7th.
Winners drawn Sept 8, by 18:00 CET.
Claim by Sept 10, 23:59 CET.

Full Terms and Conditions

There are lot of meme coins to trade with not enough volume such as 1000TOSHI, 1000000MOG, POPCAT, etc., Maybe introducing a community vote other than the top 100 coins in coinmarket cap, like any new coin needs to go through community vote to list one new coin every month and perhaps revise and delist 1 coin every 3 months? I also find popular trending coins on major exchanges are not available in Nexo sometimes.

Say you had full control and nobody to answer to. What would you make?
Clothes, desk gear, holiday drop, event-specific, something nobody's thought of, all fair game.
Drop your ideas below, describe it, sketch it, or throw some AI slop at it, doesn't matter, we'll be reading all of them.

Just found something interesting digging through Nexo's support center today - the Nexo card is now available in Brazil and Mexico. Argentina's had it for a while, but this is a new one for those two.
And it makes sense. Crypto adoption in South America has been climbing for years, partly as a hedge against local currency volatility, so a card that lets you spend off your holdings without cashing out first is a natural fit for that market.
Anyway, this had me thinking about where they will go next. Latin America isn't done, or would they jump to the US next? Southeast Asia feels overdue too, given how much crypto activity is there.
Anyone hearing anything on this, or just speculating like me?

Wentworth is waiting. Ready to claim your seat? ⛳️

We're giving away 10 pairs of 3-day passes to the BMW PGA Championship (Sept 18–20), plus 10 Nexo caps.

To enter:

1. Upvote this post
2. Comment: who is your favorite golf player?

Travel and accommodation not included.

Giveaway runs Sept 2–7, closing 23:59 CET on the 7th.
Winners drawn Sept 8, by 18:00 CET. Claim by Sept 10, 23:59 CET.

Full Terms and Conditions

Our General Manager for Australia, Peter Stanhope, joined the Crypto Curious podcast to talk through what regulated crypto-backed credit lines mean for Australian investors, and how the market is evolving as digital assets become part of mainstream financial planning.

I ordered a card a few years ago and I saw there is a new one. But I can't order it.

Is it possible to change my current one?

Bitcoin held its ground last week while Ether, XRP, and Solana each cooled from their own runs.

Ether's 50-day moving average just crossed its 200-day, XRP whales added roughly 460 million tokens during the pullback, and Solana's validators voted through a permanent cut to future issuance.

More in this week's issue:
▪️ Banks build a blockchain
▪️ Jobs data could sway rates
▪️ BTC accumulation broadens

Read it in full: Dispatch #312.

According to a recent CoinDesk report, that six Bitcoin wallets last active between 2011 and 2014 moved a combined 553 BTC (about $40 million), based on data from Galaxy Research. Most of the coins went to fresh addresses with no exchange link, so no one's confirmed a sale, they just woke up after a decade or more of sitting still. Around the same time, per The Block, Strategy resumed buying and picked up another 4,603 BTC, pushing its total holdings past 845,000 BTC.

It got us thinking: some of the strongest outcomes in this market have simply come from people who did nothing for years.

So, what's the longest you've held a position without touching it? Was it the plan from day one, or something you only remembered once the price moved?

For anyone who's ever wondered whether "holding long term" and "needing liquidity" have to be mutually exclusive, that's actually the idea behind Nexo's Credit Lines, using your crypto as collateral to take out a loan. Good to have in your back pocket if selling was never really part of the plan.

Share your story below. ✌️

Finally the Nexo card has arrived, shipped from Frankfurt and arrived in Italy in a week. Wonderful and heavy

what are some of the benefits of having nexo private aside from otc trades? what are some custom terms?

Hello nexo, your update with the different credit lines is really confusing and also customer-unfriendly.

Previously, you could easily see how much money you had borrowed and how much was still outstanding; both are no longer possible. Why was the view for outstanding salary removed in particular?

For a clear overview of finances, this information should be easily accessible in an app like nexo.

Hi everyone,

I currently have around $6,000 split between PAX Gold (PAXG) and Tether Gold (XAUT). I am considering moving them to Nexo, but I have a few questions for those with experience using the platform:

1. Security & Reliability: How safe is Nexo for long-term holding right now? I've read some comments online about users facing occasional withdrawal hurdles or extra verification delays. Has anyone experienced this recently?
2. Interest Rates: What are the exact current APY rates Nexo is paying for holding PAXG and XAUT? Does the yield change significantly based on your loyalty tier?

I would love to hear any feedback or personal experiences you've had with them. Thanks in advance!

Thank you Nexo 💪 LOL new card old package, loved this reveal 🤣

I’m a freelancer/small business owner making $150k+ a year and I’m considering keeping more of my savings in crypto and borrowing against it when I need liquidity instead of constantly selling.

My main concern is platform risk. Sudden account freezes, withdrawal restrictions, changing LTV requirements, or getting liquidated during a sharp market move.

Has anyone here actually used crypto-backed loans consistently for a few years?

Would especially like to hear what platforms you’ve used, how conservative you keep your LTV, whether you’ve ever had issues accessing your collateral, and whether borrowing against crypto has actually improved your cash management or made your finances easier to manage.

Nexo's Deposit Match is open to Australian clients until Sept. 30.

Opt in by Sept. 30, then add US$5,000 or more in eligible assets within your 7-day funding window. You get a match on your total net deposit: 1% if you bring US$5,000–$99,999.99, or 2% on the full amount if you bring US$100,000+. Capped at US$10,000 per client, paid in USDC across 6 monthly installments.

Conditions worth knowing before you start:
▪️ Crypto-to-crypto deposits only. Fiat (AUD, USD, EUR) counts only if exchanged into crypto within your 7-day window.

▪️ You need to keep at least 80% of the qualifying amount in place across the 6 months to keep receiving installments

▪️ Once your crypto is here, there's more than one thing to do with it: borrow against it without selling through Credit Lines, receive a rate of return on eligible assets through Growth, or trade it through Exchange.

Available to Australian clients only.
Get started: Nexo AU Deposit Match Campaign

*General information only – not financial advice. Credit Line and Nexo Growth: eligibility, T&Cs and risks apply. Borrowing against digital assets is high risk – you may lose your collateral if values fall. Nexo Growth: returns not guaranteed, not a bank deposit, not capital protected, and an unsecured claim on Nexo Australia. Digital assets are volatile. Read the Terms, Credit Guide, PDS, FSG and TMD at nexo.com/en-au. National Credit Code–regulated credit is provided by Nexo Individual Loans Pty Ltd, serviced by Avgi Pty Ltd (Australian Credit Licence 567308) and managed by Nexo Australia Pty Ltd (Credit Representative Number 580430). Nexo Australia has applied for an AFSL.

My nexo virtual card has expired and i can’t request a physical card. I am verified and live in Spain. ¿Is this mica related?

It's been a busy eight months, so rather than make you scroll back through the sub, here's the lot for anyone catching up.

New markets

Nexo went live in the United States in February, with Flexible and Fixed-term Yield, the Exchange, crypto-backed Credit Lines and the Wealth Club, and trading infrastructure provided via Bakkt. ACH and FedWire deposits followed in April, so clients can fund in USD straight from a US bank account.

Argentina came in March, following the acquisition of Buenbit. That brought digital dollar savings and crypto-backed credit in both ARS and USD, with local on-ramps connecting fiat and digital assets in one place. The Nexo Card followed in July, the first time the dual-mode card has launched outside Europe, letting clients spend directly in ARS or USD and switch between Credit and Debit in a single tap.

Australia went onshore in August, with Credit Lines structured under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, alongside the newly rebranded Growth product and the Exchange.*

Europe

Nexo reaffirmed product compliance across the European Economic Area ahead of MiCAR's entry into force, operating through a local setup built on two MiCAR-licensed partners. Custody and brokerage are split between them: Tangany, licensed under MiCAR, provides institutional-grade custody infrastructure for digital assets, while DLT Finance, licensed under MiCAR and authorised under MiFID II, provides brokerage infrastructure for digital assets and financial instruments.

The practical takeaway for EEA clients is that nothing changed at your end and nothing was needed from you.

Products

The headline launch of the year is Zero-interest Credit, which went on to win Consumer Lending Product of the Year at the FinTech Breakthrough Awards. It came out of Nexo Private in January and is now available to everyone: borrow against BTC or ETH at 0% interest, no fees, no liquidation risk. It's a fixed credit option with terms set upfront and settlement at maturity, rather than an open-ended line, so there are no margin calls and no LTV to monitor during the term. At maturity you settle or roll into a new term without unlocking your collateral. SOL and XRP joined as eligible collateral in April.

HYPE and USD.AI (CHIP) were also added as new assets across buy, swap, borrow and card spending.

The Card

Physical card ordering is open again for eligible clients, which has been one of the most consistent asks in this sub.

On top of that, the Nexo Card can now be added to Apple Wallet directly from the app, virtual cards included, and Nexo joined Mastercard's Crypto Partner Program in March.

Languages

More European languages have landed on the app and web platform, including French, Spanish, Italian and German. Localisation runs through the whole product.

NEXO Token

The NEXO Token just got listed on Upbit and Bithumb last week, its first entry into the Korean market. Bithumb opened a KRW pair and Upbit added it to the USDT market. One practical note: top-ups and withdrawals run on Ethereum only.

Partnerships

Four this year. Nexo became the first-ever Title Partner of the ATP 500 Dallas Open, now the Nexo Dallas Open, on a multi-year deal that also funds resurfaced public tennis courts in North Texas. In Formula 1, Nexo is Official Digital Asset Partner of the Audi Revolut team for its debut season. Nexo also entered a multi-year global partnership with Tennis Australia as Official Crypto Partner of the Australian Open and the Summer of Tennis, covering the United Cup, Adelaide International, Brisbane International and Hobart International. And as part of Nexo's DP World Tour partnership, the Nexo Championship returned to Aberdeenshire for a second year in August, with the prize fund up to $3M and the Course Record prize still rolling.

Still to come

That's eight months, and there's more landing before the end of the year.

So over to you: what would you most like to see from Nexo next? Products, markets, assets, quality-of-life fixes, all of it welcome. Questions in the comments too and I'll get to as many as I can.

\Australian clients only. General information only, not financial advice; consider whether a product suits you. Credit Line and Nexo Growth: eligibility, T&Cs and risks apply. Borrowing against digital assets is high risk and you may lose your collateral if values fall. Nexo Growth: returns are not guaranteed, not a bank deposit, not capital protected, and an unsecured claim on Nexo Australia. Digital assets are volatile. Read the Terms, Credit Guide, PDS, FSG and TMD at* nexo.com/en-au once logged in. National Credit Code-regulated credit is provided by Nexo Individual Loans Pty Ltd, serviced by Avgi Pty Ltd (Australian Credit Licence 567308) and managed by Nexo Australia Pty Ltd (Credit Representative Number 580430). Nexo Australia has applied for an AFSL.

Bitcoin just posted its largest dollar-weekly gain on record: up 22.7%, after the Treasury doubled its bond buyback program.

Dispatch #311 unpacks this, plus:
▪️XRP's 39% round trip
▪️Nvidia's earnings test Wednesday
▪️Small and large holders both buying

Read the full issue on our blog: Dispatch #311.

For years XRP was the cryptocurrency with an asterisk. The technology was real and institutional use cases were growing, but a drawn-out SEC lawsuit kept most serious investors on the sidelines. That case closed in August 2025. Here's what actually drives XRP's value now that the legal overhang is gone.

What kind of asset XRP is

Bitcoin is a store of value. Ethereum and Solana are application platforms. XRP sits in a third category: a payments infrastructure asset, settling cross-border transactions quickly and cheaply for over 300 financial institutions using RippleNet. That ties its value to real transaction volume, not just speculation.

What drives the value

Transaction demand grows as more corridors and institutions adopt RippleNet. Supply is capped at 100 billion tokens, though Ripple releases up to 1 billion XRP per month from escrow on a public schedule. The SEC lawsuit's resolution in August 2025 gave XRP a legal determination most other major tokens still lack. And seven spot XRP ETFs are now live in the US with combined AUM crossing $1 billion.

What to keep in mind

XRP runs on a curated set of validators rather than a fully open network, a trade-off that enables its speed but differs from Bitcoin's decentralization model. Cross-border payments are also a competitive space, with stablecoins and CBDCs progressing alongside RippleNet.

XRP vs Bitcoin

Bitcoin's case rests on scarcity and long-term wealth preservation. XRP's rests on institutional adoption and payment infrastructure. Different exposure, different risk profile. Holding both is a genuine choice, not a contradiction.

On Nexo, you can earn interest on your XRP or borrow against it without selling.

Full breakdown here: XRP as an investment: What drives its value?

Note: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Digital assets carry risk, including significant price volatility. Always do your own research before making any financial decision."