The altcoin market is heating up even though Bitcoin is flat — AVAX and HNT are leading the way | CoinDesk JAPAN

Bitcoin (BTC) has risen about 15% in the past 72 hours, but on the 6th there was little change, hovering around $44,000 (approximately 6.38 million yen, equivalent to 145 yen to the dollar). However, the speculative trend continues, and many altcoins are rapidly increasing in price.

Among crypto assets (virtual currencies) with a market value of over $1 billion, Avalanche (AVAX) had the largest rise, rising 17% on the 6th. Avalanche nearly doubled in price in November.

Among the cryptoassets that saw big gains was HNT from Helium, a crypto connectivity project that migrated from its own blockchain to the Layer 1 Solana blockchain last year. Shares rose 42% on the day after Helium announced it was launching a $20-per-month mobile phone plan in the U.S. with unlimited data, text messages and calls.

Meme coins are also showing signs of movement, led by Dogecoin (DOGE). Dogecoin has risen 11% in the past 24 hours, surpassing $0.10 for the first time since April.

Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda, said: “Bitcoin’s rally is highly unusual even by Bitcoin standards, and the prospect of ETF (exchange traded fund) approval has been “It highlights just how excited people are.” He said lower interest rate expectations are also contributing to Bitcoin’s rise, but he thinks the main factor is expectations for ETFs.

｜Translation and editing: Rinan Hayashi
｜Image: CoinDesk
｜Original text: Altcoins Heat Up With AVAX and HNT Leading the Way