Best Altcoins to Buy Ahead of the Christmas “Santa Rally”

Crypto is heading into the Christmas stretch with an unusual mix of signals. On one hand, the macro backdrop is getting noisier after Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic warned against pushing rate cuts too far, arguing inflation credibility is on the line. On the other, liquidity narratives are creeping back into the conversation – exactly the kind of second-order catalyst that tends to matter more for long-term crypto holders.

Price action across most digital assets currently reflects that tension. Bitcoin has been hovering around $90,000 today, even as headlines point to sizable spot ETF outflows (over $277 million yesterday). That resilience shows that sellers aren’t getting the clean follow-through they’d normally want into year-end. And in past cycles, that’s often how you get serious bounces once traders’ positioning flips.

There’s also the seasonal angle to keep in mind. The term “Santa Rally” has gained major traction on social media, as the coming weeks could bring thinner order books, end-of-year rebalancing, and reflexive risk-taking when volatility compresses. If that setup does come to pass, the biggest winners will most likely be coins with crisp narratives and clear execution paths – such as scaling, on-chain utility, or a strong community flywheel.

With that in mind, we’ll look at three projects that map well to the current outlook: Bitcoin Hyper (HYPER), PEPENODE (PEPENODE), and Monero (XMR), which could be the best altcoins to buy before Christmas arrives.

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Bitcoin Hyper (HYPER)

Bitcoin Hyper is pitching an aggressive idea: a Bitcoin Layer 2 that integrates the Solana Virtual Machine (SVM) for smart contract execution. The goal is straightforward: fast, low-cost programmability while still anchoring to Bitcoin for settlement. That “Bitcoin security plus high-speed execution” narrative has helped Bitcoin Hyper raise almost $30 million, with more action still to come before its presale ends.

The new Layer 2 employs a modular design, including the Bitcoin L1 for settlement, and a real-time SVM L2 for execution, with periodic L1 state anchoring and a decentralized canonical bridge for BTC transfers. In practical terms, Bitcoin Hyper’s use cases could include wrapped BTC payments with low fees, DeFi (swaps, lending, staking), and dApps for NFT platforms and games.

Whale purchases have been a regular occurrence for Bitcoin Hyper, with tokens priced at $0.013435 and massive buys of up to $456,500 coming in since November. There’s also a staking contract for HYPER holders, with a dynamic APY of 39%. If the Bitcoin Hyper team delivers on their vision, this presale’s clear success could translate into huge gains following HYPER’s exchange debut.

PEPENODE (PEPENODE)

As the first-ever “Mine-to-Earn” meme coin, the PEPENODE token looks like a pure risk-on asset – but it’s also being integrated into a virtual crypto mining game, imbuing it with meaningful utility. Players will be able to acquire tiered rewards by building “Meme Nodes” and combining them to earn real crypto (such as more PEPENODE tokens, or even high-cap coins like PEPE or FARTCOIN).

This means gamers can make the most of PEPENODE’s incentive layer, instead of just hoping for another meme coin pump. Token staking APYs are currently set at 552%, and PEPENODE’s temporarily discounted price is $0.0011968, making it easy for new buyers to quickly accumulate large numbers of tokens.

While the broader market navigates a potential “Santa Rally,” PEPENODE could benefit regardless of established assets’ performance. As a presale token, PEPENODE offers protection from extreme price volatility as its token value will increase in line with a predetermined schedule. Therefore, we could see even more inflows beyond the $2.3 million already invested by whales and retail players.

Monero (XMR)

Monero remains the most battle-tested privacy coin in crypto. It’s designed for anonymous, untraceable transactions using advanced cryptographic techniques – and the privacy market is still highly active in 2025, as surveillance-related narratives have made headlines throughout the year.

Monero’s core feature is default privacy via ring signatures, stealth addresses, and confidential transactions, paired with ongoing efforts to maintain decentralization and mitigate mining centralization risks. Its main forward-looking catalyst is the upcoming FCMP++ upgrade, which aims to enhance anonymity and potentially improve quantum resistance posture.

Over the last week, Monero’s XMR token price has risen by 7.6%, with renewed momentum tied to privacy upgrades, network stress-testing, and exchange relisting rumors. This kind of fundamental movement could front-run a broader sector rotation – making Monero one of the best altcoins to buy while anticipation of a “Santa Rally” continues to build.