Bull market, bear market, or maybe altseason? Opinions are divided among crypto industry insiders on where exactly we are in the cycle, with some seeing a surge in prices ahead, and others remaining skeptical on whether the current rally is sustainable.
The sense of confusion and mixed market sentiment also echoed by crypto trading venue SFOX, whose research team noted that “the SFOX Multi-Factor Market Index remains at neutral” in their latest crypto market report:
“Based on our calculations and analyses, the SFOX Multi-Factor Market Index, which was set at neutral a month ago, remains at neutral as of February 4th — though, within the confines of that rating, it has moved away from the bullish direction of the index (+1) towards the bearish direction of the index (-1),” the report said.
According to SFOX, the index is calculated by analyzing the four factors “price momentum, market sentiment, volatility, and continued advancement of the sector.”
However, the company stressed that while prices appear to be increasing and substantial growth is happening in terms of institutional product offerings and regulatory clarity, there are still significant unknowns hovering over the market at large:
- it’s not clear whether Bitcoin will function as a safe haven in coming geopolitical turmoil;
- it’s not clear how much institutional appetite is actually there for all the institutional crypto offerings being launched;
- and it’s not clear what impact the upcoming , just four months away, will have on the price of BTC.
Despite SFOX sticking to its “neutral” outlook, however, Mati Greenspan, Founder of Quantum Economics, appears more optimistic, responding to a tweet about the recent rally that “It’s altseason.”
“One of the defining attributes of altseason are the random pumps on various coins, whether deserved or not. Dash, Zcash, BSV, Tezos and several others have been tracking some serious gains lately,” he added in his newsletter today.
According to him, it does seem that now, just as in the traditional markets with Tesla and the Nasdaq, investors are embracing risk.
