Most people think that altcoin season needs billions
The answer: No
Imagine: market cap of 10 million
Price: $10
Do you think it takes $10 million to reach $20?
Never just $500,000
Selling 200,000 of the token crashes its price to $5?
No one explains this to you
This article will completely change your perspective @GiveRep
It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been in the crypto world, many still overlook a very basic point:
How liquidity really works
And how much money is needed to move or drop the price of a digital currency
This ignorance could cost you a lot (and it may have already). Let’s explain it step by step
1. Basic Concepts:
To understand the growth of a token or digital asset or even a stock, you need to know the difference between:
Market Capitalization
Fully Diluted Valuation (FDV)
Liquidity
Token Unlock Schedule (Vesting/Unlocks)
Market Cap = Current Token Price × Circulating Supply
But don’t confuse market cap with FDV.
FDV = price × total supply (even if not yet released)
This difference is unknown to many beginners, leading them to be the liquidity that early investors (VCs) exit with at every new unlock.
2. Why are FDV and unlock schedules important?
Some projects release tokens monthly that equal double the current supply!
The market cap may seem low (e.g., 10 million dollars), but the real FDV could be 200 million.
With every new unlock, the supply increases and pressures the price down.
Example: $APT launched with 130 million tokens out of a billion, and with each unlock, there was huge selling pressure.
Even though the market cap seemed "cheap" at 500 million, the FDV was over 4 billion.
The bottom line?
Always check unlock schedules — sometimes you think you entered early, but you’re just "exit liquidity" for others.
3. Liquidity: The real axis of price movement
This is where the fun begins.
Many think:
Token X priced at $1 with a supply of 1 billion = 1 billion market cap.
To raise the price to $2, do we need another billion? Totally wrong.
Liquidity is the most important factor.
Liquidity means the ability to buy or sell at the current price without significantly impacting the market.
A token with a billion market cap but only $30 million in liquidity can double its price with just $15 million in buying pressure — not a billion.
And similarly, it can crash just as quickly if a sell-off of the same value enters.
4. A real-world example:
The $JELLYJELLY token had a market cap of $60 million, but it fell 50% after only a $1.2 million sale.
5. Solana meme coins: weak liquidity, crazy volatility
Some meme coins on Solana reach a market cap of 300 million, but their liquidity is only 5 million.
Selling or buying just 1% of the supply can raise or drop the price by 100%.
And that’s why memes fly quickly — but that doesn’t mean whales exit easily at the top.
In fact, every large sell-off violently pressures the price down.
6. How is manipulation done?
Many developers list their tokens on only one or two platforms (DEX), with very limited liquidity.
8. A final tip for new traders:
If you’re new to the market, be careful not to be deceived by numbers alone.
Don’t rely only on the token price.
Don’t be dazzled by the apparent market cap.
Don’t assume that "you’re early" just because the price seems low.
Always start with an analysis:
FDV: Is the project secretly huge?
Unlock Schedule: Is there a wave of selling pressure coming?
Real liquidity: Can buying or selling move the price quickly?
The platforms where the token is listed: Are they DEXs with a few liquidity providers?
The intention of the project: Is there a real product or just a passing hype?
9. How do you protect yourself?
Use tools like:
Token Unlocks: To monitor unlock schedules
DEXTools and Birdeye: To measure real liquidity
CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko: To analyze supply and compare it to market cap
Follow trustworthy analysis accounts, and don’t chase trends blindly.
10. The final word:
In the crypto market, money isn’t made from speed, but from understanding.
Financial knowledge and the ability to read the market are your real weapons.
Don’t be exit liquidity for the project’s whales.
Be the smart one who knows when to enter… and when to exit.