The first week of October 2016 has delivered a stark reminder of the volatility that defines cryptocurrency markets, with altcoins suffering heavy losses while Bitcoin remains remarkably resilient. Monero, the privacy-focused cryptocurrency, has been hit hardest with a devastating 30% weekly decline, as investors flee riskier digital assets and consolidate around the market leader.
TL;DR
- Monero (XMR) crashes over 30% in a single week, falling from double digits to $7.36
- Bitcoin holds steady at $614 with a modest 1.87% weekly gain
- Total crypto market cap stands at approximately $11.4 billion
- Steem and Factom also suffer double-digit losses of 26% and 25% respectively
- Ethereum drops 2% to $13.17 amid ongoing network DoS attacks
A Tale of Two Markets
October 1, 2016 presents a fascinating divergence in the cryptocurrency landscape. While Bitcoin trades steadily at $613.98 with a market capitalization of $9.76 billion — representing over 85% dominance of the total crypto market — the altcoin space is experiencing what can only be described as a bloodbath. The contrast could not be starker: Bitcoin posts a modest 1.87% gain over the past seven days, while Monero, recently one of the most promising altcoins, has plummeted by 30.77% in the same period.
According to CoinMarketCap data from October 1, Monero is now trading at $7.36, down from significantly higher levels just a week ago. The privacy coin’s market capitalization has shrunk to $95.8 million, a dramatic reversal for a cryptocurrency that had been riding a wave of enthusiasm around its privacy features and adoption by darknet markets.
The Altcoin Carnage
Monero is not alone in its suffering. Steem, the social media cryptocurrency that powers the Steemit platform, has plunged 26.10% over the week to $0.45, with its market cap falling to $71.3 million. Despite the hype surrounding Steemit’s launch earlier in 2016 — which saw early users receive substantial payouts for content creation — the token has struggled to maintain its value as initial excitement wanes.
Factom, another altcoin that had generated significant buzz for its data-layer blockchain technology, has cratered 24.76% to $2.39, shedding value rapidly. Even Ethereum Classic (ETC), born from the controversial DAO hard fork, has dropped 4% to $1.19, though it manages to hold the fifth position by market cap at $100.8 million.
XRP, Ripple’s native token, has also taken a hit, declining 11.38% over the week to just $0.0082, with a market cap of $291 million. While XRP maintains its position as the third-largest cryptocurrency, the losses underscore the broad-based nature of the altcoin sell-off.
Why Bitcoin Holds Steady
Bitcoin’s resilience amid the altcoin carnage can be attributed to several factors. First, the ongoing Ethereum network crisis — where sustained denial-of-service attacks have overwhelmed the network since mid-September — has reminded investors of the risks inherent in newer, less battle-tested platforms. The attacks have caused Ethereum nodes to crash, transaction fees to spike up to 45 times normal levels, and significant delays in transaction processing.
Second, Bitcoin’s relative maturity and larger market cap provide a natural safe haven during periods of altcoin volatility. At $9.76 billion, Bitcoin’s market cap is nearly nine times larger than Ethereum’s $1.11 billion, making it the default choice for risk-averse crypto investors seeking stability.
Third, the broader macro environment has been favorable for Bitcoin. Chinese capital controls and yuan devaluation concerns have driven interest in Bitcoin as a store of value, while the total cryptocurrency market remains firmly in Bitcoin’s orbit with BTC dominance above 85%.
The Top 10 Reshuffled
The altcoin crash has created some interesting shifts in the CoinMarketCap rankings. Litecoin holds steady as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency at $3.85 with a $184 million market cap, posting a modest 1.29% weekly gain. Dash, at $11.71 with a $79.4 million market cap, has declined just 1.62%, outperforming most altcoins.
Further down the list, DigixDAO (DGD) has managed to hold its position with a $27.8 million market cap at $13.88 per token, while Dogecoin — the meme-turned-cryptocurrency — continues to chug along at $0.000233 with a $24.8 million market cap and a positive 2.96% weekly performance, proving that even in a market downturn, the Doge finds a way.
Why This Matters
The dramatic divergence between Bitcoin and altcoins in early October 2016 is a pattern that would repeat many times throughout cryptocurrency history. When uncertainty hits the market — whether from technical vulnerabilities, as with Ethereum’s DoS attacks, or from broader market sentiment — capital flows toward Bitcoin as the safest harbor in the crypto ecosystem. The 30% Monero crash serves as a reminder that altcoins carry substantially higher risk than Bitcoin, and that the promise of outsized returns comes with the potential for devastating losses. For investors navigating this nascent market, the lesson is clear: in crypto, not all coins are created equal, and Bitcoin’s dominance is not merely a matter of first-mover advantage but of demonstrated resilience under pressure.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
85 percent btc dominance and people were still buying steem and factom. the 2016 altcoin market was basically a casino with extra steps. at least now the alts have actual tech behind them sometimes
XMR at 7.36 was the buy signal of the decade and nobody wanted it. privacy coins peaked years later at 100x from these levels
Per H. the ETH DoS attacks were scarier than the price action. shanghai attacks took down gas for a full week. people forget eth almost died in october 2016
xmr at 7.36 and people thought privacy coins were done. fast forward to 2024 and monero is the only one regulators genuinely fear
85pct dominance at 614 BTC. total market cap was 11.4B. now a single ETF pulls that in a slow week
eth at 13.17 dealing with constant dos attacks and nobody cared because btc dominance was 85 percent. completely different market structure back then
the bitcoin angle is what got me interested
ETH at $13.17 dealing with DoS attacks while BTC held $614. those DoS attacks on eth were way underreported, gas prices were unusable for days
ETH at 13 bucks dealing with DoS attacks while BTC held steady at 614. that 85% dominance made every altcoin move irrelevant
xmr recovered from $7.36 eventually but a lot of people got shaken out at the exact bottom. same story every cycle
exactly this. Bitcoin
monero at $7.36 and people were calling it dead. privacy coins always come back when governments start talking about surveillance
ETH DoS attacks at $13 were genuinely scary. gas was so high you literally couldnt move tokens for days
85% BTC dominance in October 2016. we are never going back to that level but it sure made altcoin crashes feel inevitable
steem down 26% and factom down 25% alongside xmr. altseason 2016 was basically just btc flexing at 85% dominance while everything else bled out
onchain_vulture 85 percent dominance and a 9.7B total cap. btc at 614 was a different universe. now a single etf moves more btc in a day than the entire 2016 market cap
Catalin D. comparing the 9.7B total cap in 2016 to a single ETF day now is wild. the entire crypto market was smaller than a mid cap stock. people forget how tiny this space was
Catalin D. 85% dominance at 9.7B total cap. a single ETF flows day in 2025 moves more BTC than the entire 2016 market. comparing the two eras is almost meaningless
this is exactly right re: 30% exactly what i thought
XMR at 7.36 with BTC at 614. that 85% dominance number is wild, we will literally never see that again
85% BTC dominance in october 2016 is a number we will never see again. altcoins were basically a rounding error back then
klondike_bear 85% dominance is insane to think about. btc at $614 with a $9.7B cap. now thats a rounding error on a bad day
eth at 13 bucks getting ddosed while btc held 614. those attacks were way scarier than people remember. you literally couldnt move tokens for days without paying insane gas
dos_archive_ gas being unusable for days during the ETH DoS attacks at 13 dollars was my first real lesson in network congestion risk. people who started after 2020 have no idea how rough early eth was
XMR at $7.36 getting called dead while BTC held $614. same people who panicked sold XMR in 2016 were buying it back at $400 in 2017. privacy coins move in silence