Cryptocurrency growth leaders: 5 altcoins that didn’t fall along with the market

Some cryptocurrencies can attract liquidity and new investments despite the overall negative trend in the crypto market.

Against the backdrop of a decline in total market capitalization, it is precisely the cryptocurrency growth leaders that enable us to assess which sectors and business models remain attractive to investors even amid heightened uncertainty and capital outflows from risk assets.

This article presents cryptocurrency growth leaders that, over the past 60 days, not only avoided losing value but also increased their capitalization during a bear market.

1. Zcash (ZEC) — up 74%

In September 2025, Zcash and several other privacy-focused cryptocurrencies, such as Monero (XMR) and Dash (DASH), suddenly began to rise. Among the main reasons for this sharp surge, analysts highlight a spike in interest in the privacy-coin segment, driven by a weakening of regulatory pressure on them and, at the same time, a tightening of financial oversight over the crypto market as a whole.

An additional reason for the rapid growth of the Zcash cryptocurrency, according to analysts, may have been its listing on the largest crypto-derivatives exchange, Hyperliquid. Some experts also point out that statements by former Binance exchange head Arthur Hayes, who voiced support for the altcoin, could have led to the ZEC cryptocurrency "pump"*.

* Pump — a manipulative "inflation" of the price of a target asset, often preceding a sharp collapse (dump).

As of December 2025, the ZEC cryptocurrency ranked among the top performers: over the past 60 days, its price rose by 74% — from $228 to $445. Zcash's market capitalization reached $7.28 billion, and by this metric, the altcoin is now among the top twenty largest cryptocurrencies.

However, amid the rapid growth, analysts warn of strong overbought* conditions and the risks of a sharp decline, especially given the overall unfavorable situation in the crypto market.

* Overbought — a state of an asset in which its price has risen too quickly and sharply compared to its fundamental indicators, increasing the likelihood of a correction or a steep drop in value.

2. Telcoin (TEL) — up 39%

The Telcoin cryptocurrency is also among the top performers in cryptocurrency growth in December 2025. Although the TEL altcoin's price has fallen nearly threefold since February 2025, Telcoin has been one of the few cryptocurrencies to increase in value over the past 60 days.

Moreover, Telcoin is part of the Polygon ecosystem and has grown despite Polygon's negative dynamics. This pattern underscores that cryptocurrency growth leaders do not always depend on the overall state of the ecosystem they operate in; internal factors and expectations for product development may drive growth.

Over the past 60 days, the TEL altcoin has risen by 39% to $0.0049, with a market capitalization of $447 million. By this metric, the asset ranks among the top 100 cryptocurrencies. At the same time, the TEL token is trading only 5% above its price at the time of listing and more than 92% below its ATH, reached in May 2021 at $0.064.

3. Monero (XMR) — up 29%

The surge of interest in privacy-focused digital assets affected not only Zcash but also Monero, propelling the altcoin into the ranks of cryptocurrency growth leaders.

Over the past 60 days, the price of the Monero cryptocurrency increased by nearly 30% — from $294 to $406, while the altcoin's market capitalization exceeded $7.49 billion. By this metric, the XMR cryptocurrency ranked 16th in the CoinMarketCap rating.

Analysts note that aside from growing demand for privacy cryptocurrencies and regulatory changes, there are no other significant growth factors for Monero. Technologically, the project has not changed significantly in recent years so that the dynamics may be largely speculative.

At the same time, despite Zcash showing a stronger upward trend, the Monero protocol demonstrates higher activity: 25,000 daily transactions versus 8,000 for Zcash.

High on-chain activity strengthens Monero's position among cryptocurrency growth leaders, since the number of transactions is often considered one of the key indicators of the fundamental sustainability of any crypto project.

4. World Liberty Financial (WLFI) — up 22%

In recent years, cryptocurrency growth leaders have increasingly emerged at the intersection of finance and politics, where reputational factors and public connections can have just as much influence on price as technological solutions.

World Liberty Financial became one of the most talked-about crypto projects in 2024–2025 due to its close ties with the family of U.S. President Donald Trump. This may explain the heightened attention to the project and its inclusion among the leaders of cryptocurrency growth.

Experts believe that the rise in the WLFI altcoin's value may have been influenced by news of a key partnership with Bank of America, as well as World Liberty Financial's strategy of long-term token burning, which over time reduces the total supply of the cryptocurrency.

Positive profit reports may also have played an essential role in the dynamics of the WLFI token.

Given the situation, the listed factors managed to "reverse" the trend and lead to WLFI growth amid the negative dynamics of the crypto market in October–December 2025. Since early October 2025, the WLFI token price has increased by 22% to $0.14, making the altcoin one of the top-performing cryptocurrencies. Despite this, since its September listing, the cost of WLFI has fallen by more than half.

5. Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) — up 15%

Although after the explosive November rally, the price of the Virtuals Protocol cryptocurrency fell by more than half, over the past 60 days, the altcoin's price rose by 15% to $0.80, making the asset one of the cryptocurrency growth leaders.

By market capitalization, the VIRTUAL token ranks 89th among cryptocurrencies, with a market cap slightly exceeding $525 million. Virtuals Protocol itself is among the top ten most significant crypto projects in the field of artificial intelligence (AI).

The artificial intelligence sector remains one of the few areas where cryptocurrency growth leaders continue to emerge even in a bear market, thanks to strong interest from venture and retail investors.

In 2024, the Virtuals Protocol cryptocurrency became one of the fastest-growing assets. Since its exchange listings in January 2024, even accounting for the collapse after rapid growth, the value of the VIRTUAL token has increased nearly 80-fold. Analysts believe that one of the primary growth drivers, including in December 2025, was the high hype surrounding AI agents and neural networks.