Recently, there's been a lot of complaints: Why is this market cycle so disappointing?

Many blame liquidity shortages, which is somewhat understandable, but honestly, that's not the real root cause.

The true factor killing the momentum is the valuation ceiling.

Looking back at the previous cycle, new coins just launched with a market cap of tens of millions or even a hundred million USD, which was considered astronomical. But now? A project launches directly with a valuation of several hundred million or even a billion USD, instantly absorbing all the available market ammunition.

Imagine this scenario: major players and institutions in the primary market have already gobbled up the most lucrative parts, leaving retail investors in the secondary market with little to grab.

By the time trading opens, the market has already been driven to the sky, and later participants become the "suckers" who buy at the highest point.

The market hasn't even heated up yet, and everyone's bullets are already spent.

This is no coincidence—it's a systemic problem. The primary market acts like a pump, siphoning off the funds that should be circulating in the secondary market to push up mainstream coins like Bitcoin, turning the secondary market into a "harvesting field" for quick gains.

This approach is somewhat similar to the early A-share ecosystem—essentially a financing game rather than an investment game.

Unless this structure is broken, the so-called "golden age" of abundant opportunities and countless small-cap coins blooming everywhere will not return. The most you can hope for are quick bull swings or pump-and-dump schemes—coming fast and leaving just as quickly.

If your investment strategy still relies on the old ways, you'll find yourself increasingly passive in this market environment. Because the flow of funds has changed—from everyone working together to grow the cake, to top-tier institutions grabbing the biggest slices first, leaving retail investors to scramble for the leftovers.

Seeing through this isn't for complaining, but to adjust your tactics. Don't dream of "easy profits" anymore; learn to survive under the new rules.