Bitcoin Slump Deepens as Altcoin Market Faces Existential Crisis: Millions of Tokens Virtually Worthless

Millions of crypto tokens have become virtually worthless as the altcoin market undergoes a severe shakeout, with fewer than 1,700 of tens of millions still generating meaningful daily trading on decentralized exchanges, according to Delphi Digital. Bitcoin slid below $60,000 on June 5, extending a seven-day losing streak, while over $1.7 billion in digital assets were liquidated in 24 hours. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson warned of a “wave of failures” as his network’s ADA token plummeted 55% this year to about 16 cents. Active developers fell 32%, and funds locked in decentralized apps dropped 35%, data from DeFi Llama and Electric Capital show. Most venture-backed tokens trade over 90% below launch price, with a broad sample showing negative 80% returns, the report found. “Capital providers are saying: ‘We are tired of this nonsense,’” said Pantera Capital’s Cosmo Jiang. While stablecoins like Tether near overtaking Ether in market cap and Wall Street experiments with tokenized assets, capital concentrates in a few projects with real utility, leaving thousands of tokens struggling to justify their existence.