A wave of green has washed across the entire crypto market, and it won’t be long before traders on X (formerly known as Twitter) begin to explain that a new altcoin season has arrived. 

Altcoin season — or “altseason,” as the crypto bros say — typically measures the rallying of altcoins and a positive increase in the total market capitalization of altcoins.

Let’s take a look at some key indicators that market participants use to determine whether or not an altcoin season has emerged.

Total crypto market capitalization hits a 14-month high

The total market cap of crypto recently hit a 14-month high, clearly reflecting the current bullish momentum.

Similar strength is seen in the altcoin total market cap chart seen below. The metric measures the crypto market cap minus Bitcoin (BTC).

Total crypto market cap minus Bitcoin. Source: TradingView

Since Sept. 8, the metric has springboarded from $526 billion to $622 billion on Nov. 9. The change shows traders’ growing interest and investment interest in altcoins, along with an increase in the prices of altcoins within the metric.

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Large-cap altcoins display multiweek strength

Data from CoinMarketCap shows the top 13 altcoins by market cap (excluding stablecoins) reflecting double-digit gains within the last 30 to 60 days.

In particular, Ripple’s XRP (XRP), which has won a host of legal battles against the Securities and Exchange Commission, has witnessed 45% gains in the past 60 days. On top of the legal victories that helped to boost investor sentiment, it is rumored that Ripple will be announcing an initial public offering (IPO) on Nov. 9.

Top altcoin performers. Source: CoinMarketCap

For the past three months, Solana’s SOL (SOL) has rallied significantly and started to lose its “Sam coin” moniker. Sam coins are cryptocurrencies with exposure to Alameda Research, FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried. SOL price has gained over 107% in the past 60 days as the project continues to rebuild and gain users in the aftermath of the FTX collapse. BitMEX exchange co-founder Arthur Hayes recently joined the Solana train, announcing that he purchased the altcoin on Nov. 2.

Similar to SOL, Chainlink’s LINK (LINK) has seen massive 60-day returns of over 100% due to consistent building and usage. LINK also has posted 26% returns in six days.

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Other notable performances came from BNB (BNB), Cardano’s ADA (ADA), Tron’s TRX (TRX) and Polygon’s MATIC (MATIC), which also produced double-digit gains in a 60-day period.

The altcoin market performance seemingly coincides with an improvement in investor sentiment. One gauge of market sentiment is the Crypto Fear & Greed Index. Since starting September as fearful, the market turned to greed on Oct. 23 and has not reversed.

Crypto Fear & Greed Index. Source: Newhedge

Whether it is truly altseason or not, it is clear that excitement is returning to the crypto market.

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.