Altcoin Sell Pressure Reaches 5-Year Peak Amid Retail’s Market Exits

The crypto sector is going through a significantly extended sell-off. Specifically, the altcoin sell pressure has touched a 5-year peak. As per the data from CryptoQuant, the total buy-sell volume contrast, other than $ETH and $BTC, has slumped to -209B over 13 months. Hence, this consistent plunge underscores a lack of accumulation among institutions while the retail investors are continuously exiting the market.

Altcoin Sell Pressure Just Hit a 5-Year Extreme“Retail is out. Smart money rotated. No institutional alt accumulation in sight. This is not a dip. It’s 13 months of continuous net selling on CEX spot.” – By @IT_Tech_PL pic.twitter.com/xtu8MIK0Fd

— CryptoQuant.com (@cryptoquant_com) February 18, 2026

Altcoin Sell Pressure Jumps to 5-Year Extreme Amid Bitcoin Pullback

The growing market uncertainty has led to a notable 5-year peak in altcoin sell pressure. Particularly, excluding $ETH and $BTC, the overall buy/sell volume contrast has dropped to the -209B mark over thirteen months. This highlights that the institutional players are not accumulating amid the significant retail market exits. In the meantime, Bitcoin has also pulled back from its ATH of $125K, which occurred in October 2025, to $68.8K, displaying a wider bearish sentiment.

Specifically, in the latter part of the previous year, $BTC attained record price highs, and the total difference between buy and sell volumes slumped. This started a sheer drop around 2025’s mid. Following that, by 2026’s early period, the respective metric had dipped to levels that did not been reached over the years. This reflects relentless sell-offs on diverse centralized exchanges.

Sustained Pressure Triggers Concerns of Extended Market Downturn

According to CryptoQuant, the sustained pressure in the altcoin market has triggered crucial questions regarding the altcoin market’s future in the wider crypto landscape. For $BTC, the dip from its ATH to the present levels signifies the widely cooling speculative excess. Overall, unless new technological breakthroughs or narratives emerge to shift the momentum, the altcoin market may keep facing hefty sell pressure during this entire year.