Ethereum’s value relative to BTC has declined 53% since the Merge in September 2022.
Ethererum’s current funding rate, approximately 0.0056%, has returned to levels seen in September 2023, after which the ETH price has reached 166% in six months.
Institutional staking firm Attestant said that Ethereum could grab some of this mindshare through a mix of better value proposition and refined marketing.
Buterin’s actions come at a time when Ethereum whales, large holders of the cryptocurrency, are also making significant moves.
Benjamin Cowen foresaw ETH price dropping to $1200 as the 2024 pattern mirrored 2019 trend.
The Buterin-linked wallet has transferred 760 ETH in exchange for 1.835 million USDC at an average price of $2,414 per ETH.
Ethereum price has suffered bearish sentiment in the past five months amid a low accumulation rate from institutional investors as observed by spot Ether ETF cash flows.
Following the Ethereum ETF launch, the average 5% market depth for ETH pairs on US-based centralized exchanges has dropped by 20% and currently stands at around $14 million.
Issues around financial accountability by the Ethereum Foundation have elicited strong comments from community members.
Nick Forster, founder of Derive, outlines three crucial factors for Ether to break its all-time high: Trump’s victory in the 2024 U.S. election, aggressive Federal Reserve rate cuts, and a rise in global liquidity.
Ethereum revenues took a hit in 2024, dropping below $100 million in May from a high of +$500 million in March.
Artemiy Parshakov, Head of Staking at P2P.org, points out that increased network participation lowers individual staking rewards, which leads to anticipated reductions in APRs for traditional staking.
Vitalik Buterin’s past movements of ETH have often had market-wide implications. For instance, in May 2021, his donation of over $1 billion worth of different cryptocurrencies to an India Covid-19 Relief Fund led to a substantial decline in Ethereum price.
The expiring options could lead to increased market activity and heightened volatility due to the large volume of contracts.
In addition to these significant sell-offs, there is evidence of waning interest in Ethereum-related investment products.