Cryptomarket has changed its favorites: capital is moving into select altcoins

In the cryptocurrency market in September, a noticeable rotation of capital was observed: while bitcoin remains the dominant asset, some investors are switching to certain altcoins. The strongest dynamics are supported by inflows into cryptocurrency ETFs, expectations regarding Fed policy, and a revival of interest in privacy-oriented coins.

Which cryptocurrencies are currently growing the fastest

If we exclude very small tokens with low liquidity that can gain hundreds of percent in a day, among relatively large projects the following stand out:

Data from CoinGecko at the beginning of September shows especially strong monthly dynamics for ZEC, HYPE, SOL, and XRP.

However, if we expand the sample to the top hundred cryptocurrencies, the list of leaders will be much more aggressive. For example, in early September, among the fastest growing assets were Zcash, Ethena, Curve DAO, Official Trump, Hyperliquid, and Monero.

So now we see a classic situation: the smaller the capitalization and liquidity of an asset, the higher the potential return — but also the higher the risk of a sharp drop.

Why are cryptocurrencies rising again

The current growth has several interrelated reasons.

1. Expectations regarding the Fed

The crypto market is extremely sensitive to expectations regarding interest rates in the US.

Comments by Federal Reserve official Christopher Waller in late August – early September were perceived as relatively dovish. The market's expectations that the Fed might not tighten monetary policy increased.

This became one of the factors behind the growth of Bitcoin and other risk assets.

However, then strong US employment data again forced investors to be more cautious about the prospects of rate cuts. That is why Bitcoin, after moving above $80,000, returned below that mark.

2. ETFs are becoming the most important source of demand

Cryptocurrency ETFs are gradually changing the market structure.

Previously, an investor wishing to invest in Bitcoin or an altcoin had to buy cryptocurrency directly on an exchange. Now a significant part of demand can be provided by traditional investment instruments.

It is especially interesting that capital flows are beginning to diverge.

In early September, Bitcoin ETFs faced an outflow of about $236 million, while ETFs on Ethereum, Solana, and XRP showed inflows.

This indicates that institutional investors are becoming more selective.

3. Growing interest in altcoins

Bitcoin still dominates the market, but capital is gradually starting to move into certain altcoins.

This is especially evident in the cases of Zcash, Hyperliquid, Solana, and XRP.

However, it is too early to speak of a full-fledged altseason. Bitcoin dominance remains around 57.5%, and individual strong movements of altcoins so far look more like selective capital rotation than a mass rise of the entire market.

Another trend — the return of interest in privacy coins

One of the most unexpected storylines of 2026 has been the return of interest in privacy-oriented cryptocurrencies.

The main example is Zcash, but interest is also observed in Monero.

The reason is that amid expanding regulation of the crypto market, some investors are again paying attention to technologies that allow increasing transaction privacy.

At the same time, ZEC's growth cannot be explained only by the general market dynamics: the cryptocurrency significantly outperforms most of the largest assets.