The bank cuts its 2026 crypto price targets, warning of further near-term capitulation as ETF outflows and macro headwinds weigh on digital assets.
Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat, is betting on a prompt bounce for Ethereum. He pointed to a pattern stretching back to 2018: each time ETH dropped deep, it later recovered strongly. Related Reading: Jim Cramer Suggests US Government Could Buy Bitcoin Near $60K That history has shaped the tone of his remarks in Hong Kong, where he argued that previous collapses ended with rapid turnarounds. Tom Lee Backs A Quick Rebound According to Lee, Ethereum has endured more than a 50% decline on eight separate occasions since 2018 and each time it came back. He used those past moves as the basis for his view that another sharp recovery is likely. Analysts often disagree about how much weight to give past cycles. $ETH 100% V-Shape Record ???? Tom Lee highlights Ethereum’s eight V-shaped recoveries since 2018. Tom DeMark, whose models are followed by macro legends like Paul Tudor Jones and used across institutional desks, says a final undercut near $1,890 would “perfect” the bottom. That… pic.twitter.com/j9zWoUOLgP — SamAlτcoin.eth (@SAMALTCOIN_ETH) February 11, 2026 Market conditions are not identical now, yet patterns matter because traders use them. Some analysts have highlighted the $1,890 level as a likely low. They said it might be probed twice in an “undercut” before stabilizing. That kind of setup is common in volatile markets and is used to find entry points. Staking Squeezes Liquid Supply Reports note that staking demand remains strong even while prices fall. The validator entry queue has swollen to about 21 days, with roughly 4 million ETH waiting to be accepted. That has left more than 30% of the total supply locked up — about 36.7 million ETH. People are earning roughly 2.80% APR on staked coins, a modest return by crypto standards, but enough to persuade many holders to lock funds away. When large sums are immobilized like this, tradable supply thins and price reactions can be amplified on both the way down and the way up. Related Reading: More Bitcoin Ahead: Saylor, Strategy Commit To Regular BTC Purchases Ethereum Price Action And Market Strain Market moves have been sharp. ETH slid to about $1,900 at the time of writing, down 5.4% in the last seven days, and has failed to hold above $2,000 in recent days. Over the last 30 days, the token fell roughly 36%. Heavy liquidations have been recorded, with more than $1 billion in positions closed out as leverage was forced to unwind. That generated fast selling and left traders cautious. Economic data, geopolitical headlines, and anticipation of US inflation readings have added to the nervous mood. Some desks now treat any bounce as tentative until volatility eases. Whether that rebound comes fast or takes time, Lee’s stance is clear: sharp drops have not marked the end for Ethereum in the past. He sees the current stress as another chapter in a familiar cycle, not a structural break. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
The firm’s looped ETH long position unraveled this week as ether's price crashed, resulting in an estimated $686 million loss.
“I think crypto starts to become invisibly more part of everyone's lives," said Tom Lee — the two appeared on a panel together Tuesday morning at the Ondo Summit in New York.
By several measures, activity on the network remains near peak levels, which has industry leaders plussed about the plunge in ether's price.
According to reports, Vitalik Buterin has pulled 16,384 ETH from his reserves and plans to spend it on privacy and truly open technology. That move is paired with a call for five years of thrift at the Ethereum Foundation so the foundation can keep building core software while staying healthy for the long run. Related Reading: Gold, Silver Steal The Spotlight As Crypto Hype Fades On Social Media: Santiment A New Focus On Privacy And Openness Reports say the funds, worth about $45 million, will back a broad list of projects: open silicon, secure hardware, private messaging, local-first operating systems, and tools that mix zero-knowledge proofs with other privacy tools like FHE and differential privacy. He has already put money toward encrypted messaging and air quality work, and some new efforts aim to make secure hardware more affordable and verifiable. The plan covers both pieces of tech and the systems people run on them. Simple apps for daily life are included, not just fancy research. In these five years, the Ethereum Foundation is entering a period of mild austerity, in order to be able to simultaneously meet two goals: 1. Deliver on an aggressive roadmap that ensures Ethereum’s status as a performant and scalable world computer that does not compromise on… — vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) January 30, 2026 Personal Money For Public Good Buterin is taking on what might once have been “special projects” of the foundation. He withdrew the ETH personally, and reports note he is looking at secure, decentralized staking to route future staking rewards into these efforts. That shifts some financial risk from institutions to an individual who wants those projects to survive even when they are slow or controversial. Some of the initiatives are unlikely to attract fast capital. That is why personal backing matters. A Stronger Core, Not Bigger Hype The Foundation is said to be entering a phase of mild austerity so it can meet two clear goals at once: finish an aggressive technical roadmap and remain alive and independent into the far future. The technical aim is to keep Ethereum fast and scalable without losing decentralization or security. At the same time, the team wants to protect users’ ability to control their keys, their data, and their privacy. Reports note that “Ethereum for people who need it” is the guiding line, rather than chasing large corporate deals that transform how people use the chain. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s Slide To $82K Sets Off A $1.7 Billion Chain Reaction Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a crypto project backed by US President Donald Trump, moved a chunk of its Bitcoin exposure into Ethereum this week. Reports say the group sold wrapped Bitcoin holdings and picked up a large amount of Ether in the same set of transactions. Related Reading: Money Keeps Leaving: Bitcoin ETFs Shed $1.72 Billion In Just 5 Sessions WLFI Moves From WBTC To ETH According to blockchain trackers, about 93.77 WBTC was sold, which worked out to roughly $8 million at the time of the swap. The proceeds were used to buy around 2,868 ETH, with an average price of about $2,813 per unit. The trade was executed from a wallet that on-chain analysts link to WLFI’s treasury. That wallet activity was visible on public ledgers and has been shared across several crypto news sites and data monitors. Onchain Data And Market Context Prices were modestly lower for ETH when the purchase happened, which some traders see as a buying chance. Reports say this move comes as Ethereum trading ranges have made some holders rethink where to park large sums. The World Liberty Finance (@worldlibertyfi) has sold 93.77 $WBTC ($8.07M) for 2,868.4 $ETH at a price of $2,813. Address: 0xee7f7f53f0d0c8c56a38e97c5a58e4d321a174dc Data @nansen_ai pic.twitter.com/yhh7IvYLLz — Onchain Lens (@OnchainLens) January 26, 2026 WBTC is a tokenized form of Bitcoin that inhabits the Ethereum chain, so swapping it for native ETH changes how those funds can be used within decentralized finance. The funds were moved through a public wallet tied to WLFI. This was confirmed by on-chain evidence that was circulated by data platforms. Strategic Reasons Behind The Shift Several reasons could explain the swap. Holding ETH gives direct access to smart contracts, staking, and DeFi tools that WBTC cannot offer on its own. Some market watchers think WLFI may be positioning to use ETH for on-chain services, staking, or profit from future network activity. Others suggest it could be a way to rebalance risk between stores of value and utility tokens. Reports say no single motive can be proved from the chain itself, only the movement of funds. Reaction And Broader Signals Traders reacted with curiosity rather than panic. Prices barely moved on the news, showing the market may have already priced in similar flows. Smaller investors watched closely because such a swap by a high-profile, politically linked project draws attention. The wallet activity was tracked publicly, and analysts noted the timing matched a period of calmer ETH price action. Related Reading: XRP Charts Flash Familiar Signal As Analyst Calls For $11, Then $70 What This Could Mean For Investors Reports note that big reallocations like this can change short-term sentiment, though they do not always lead to lasting rallies. For holders who prefer simplicity, swapping WBTC for ETH changes the way capital can be used, moving from a Bitcoin peg to native network participation. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
UBS will gradually introduce crypto services, starting with select private clients in Switzerland, according to Bloomberg.
A record surge in activity on the Ethereum network is likely being driven by scam-related behavior rather than genuine user growth, according to the bank's analysts.
The Fusaka upgrade raised usage, but pressure from layer-2 networks and rival blockchains continues to cloud Ethereum's long-term growth outlook.
U.S.-listed spot bitcoin and ether ETFs logged their strongest week in three months, led by bullish bets.
Ethereum is showing signs of strength on two critical fronts at the same time. On-chain activity has climbed to record levels, reflecting heavier real usage across the network, while long-term technical structure is leaning towards upside continuation. Together, these signals suggest that Ethereum’s current phase may be more than just sideways movement, as underlying data points to sustained demand and constructive price behavior. Related Reading: Saylor Defends Bitcoin Treasury Firms Amid Rising Criticism Ethereum Daily Transactions Reach New High Ethereum’s price action is turning bullish with a steady increase in recent days. Notably, on-chain data shows that this increase is on top of steady on-chain activity in recent days. Data from Ethereum’s on-chain activity shows that daily transactions recently climbed to approximately 2.8 million, setting a new all-time high for the network. Interestingly, this figure stands out not just as a record, but because it is roughly 64% higher than the daily transaction levels observed during the peak of the 2021 bull market. The chart data from Sentora illustrates a progression showing Ethereum’s transaction count rising steadily over the years and spiking up in early 2026. Comparing the transaction activity to 2021 adds more context considering the intense amount of activity that the Ethereum network was witnessing at the time. Back then, Ethereum was at the center of an altcoin season and NFT boom, all of which contributed to a spike in transaction activity and a push to new price highs. The fact that Ethereum is now processing significantly more transactions per day compared to 2021 shows that its network usage has grown above speculative behavior. The steady climb in transaction activity shows the sheer amount of usage across decentralized finance and stablecoin settlement, among many others. Ethereum Daily Transactions Chart. Source: @SentoraHQ On X Ethereum Reaccumulation Within A Macro Uptrend Technical analysis of Ethereum’s market capitalization on the three-week candlestick timeframe shows the cryptocurrency is still trading in a zone of stability. Particularly, technical analysis done by crypto analyst Egrag Crypto suggests that Ethereum is in reaccumulation within a macro uptrend. A look at the 3-week timeframe shows that ETH’s market cap is holding above the 21 EMA, respecting the rising macro trendline, printing higher highs & higher lows, and compressing under historical resistance. That is constructive behavior, not weakness. History shows that periods where Ethereum’s market cap held above the 21 EMA on this timeframe have led to expansion phases, whereas sustained moves below it have marked bear market conditions. Related Reading: What’s Driving The $1.42 Billion Comeback In Spot Bitcoin ETFs? At present, the structure indicates the EMA support is being defended. From a probabilistic standpoint, the current setup leans toward continuation rather than breakdown. A move through the overhead resistance band would likely confirm an expansion phase and allow Ethereum to go on a 70% to 75% bullish continuation. Market Cap ETH. Source: @egragcrypto On X On the other hand, a bearish outcome will become possible if the price action loses the 21 EMA on the three-week chart. This could validate a deeper 25% to 30% correction toward the lower trendline, but this scenario carries a lower probability. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
According to CoinGecko’s annual report, crypto treasury companies were among the year’s biggest buyers even as prices fell. Their balance sheets grew sharply, and their actions left a clear mark on supply and markets. The numbers tell a story of heavy buying, pause, and then corporate moves to protect share value. Related Reading: Crypto Money Floods US Politics As $21 Million Backs Trump PAC Large Treasury Buying Spree Reports have disclosed that these treasury firms deployed close to $50 billion into Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other tokens during 2025. At the start of the year, treasuries held more than $56 billion in crypto. By January one, 2026, that figure had risen to $134 billion — a gain of 137%. This buying helped push institutional ownership higher, with treasuries holding more than 5% of both Bitcoin and Ethereum supply by year-end. Public companies alone raised their Bitcoin reserves from about 598,714 coins to more than 1 million, an increase near 500,000 BTC. Market Drop Came Late In The Year The broader market did not keep its earlier momentum. Total crypto value fell almost 8% in 2025 and finished the year near $3 trillion. Most of the damage came late. 2025 Annual Crypto Industry Report is now LIVE ???? Last year marked crypto’s first down year since 2022, featuring a brief $4.4T peak in Q4 before a historic $19B liquidation ended the year at $3.0T. Here are 7 key highlights you shouldn’t miss ???? pic.twitter.com/HLbI5BrzwN — CoinGecko (@coingecko) January 15, 2026 The market shed almost a quarter of its value in the last three months, and a liquidation wave near $19 billion in October sped the decline after total market value briefly hit about $4.4 trillion. Bitcoin slipped roughly 1.4% to near $95,300 at one point as investors weighed policy moves in the US and shifting rate expectations. Supply Now Held By Treasuries By the start of 2026, treasuries were holding more than 1 million Bitcoin and 6 million ETH. That concentration matters because assets put on corporate books are less likely to be traded frequently. When large shares of supply are locked up, price swings can be smaller in calm times, but the effect can flip if selling is forced. BTCUSD trading at $95,524 on the 24-hour chart: TradingView Related Reading: Bitcoin’s New Power Buyers: Companies Bought 3 Times What Miners Produced Companies Shifted Strategy When Stocks Fell When prices fell in the fourth quarter, some treasury firms saw their share prices dip below the value of their crypto holdings. To support their stock, many paused buying and turned to share buybacks. That action slowed the pace of token purchases. The move was traditional: protect investors’ equity value rather than add more tokens into a weakening market. Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
Etherealize co-founders Vivek Raman and Danny Ryan believe Ethereum is exiting a regulatory "purgatory" to become the premiere destination for Wall Street.
Ethereum’s on-chain activity has jumped sharply, driven by a wave of first-time users and heavier transaction flow across the network. According to Glassnode, new activity retention roughly doubled this month — rising from about 4 million to around 8 million addresses — a move that points to a fresh cohort of wallets interacting with Ethereum rather than just repeat users. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s New Power Buyers: Companies Bought 3 Times What Miners Produced Surge In New Users Daily transactions hit a record high of 2.8 million on Thursday, a figure that is up 125% from the same period last year. Based on reports from Etherscan, active addresses have more than doubled year-over-year, moving from roughly 410,000 accounts to over 1 million as of Jan. 15. Those numbers suggest real, broad-based engagement is increasing, not merely short-lived spikes. Ethereum’s Month-over-Month Activity Retention shows a sharp spike in the “New” cohort, indicating a surge in first-time interacting addresses over the past 30 days. This reflects a notable influx of new wallets engaging with the Ethereum network, rather than activity being… pic.twitter.com/h8Zw7hXOSX — glassnode (@glassnode) January 15, 2026 Transaction Boom And L2 Effects Observers link the transaction growth in part to rising stablecoin activity and lower fees. Reports have disclosed that many transfers are migrating execution to Layer 2 networks while settlement stays on Ethereum’s main chain, which keeps finality secure and helps push down gas costs. Staking has also climbed, reaching nearly 36 million ETH, adding another layer to the network’s tightening supply dynamics. At the same time, market behavior remains careful. Strength in US equities has helped stabilize crypto prices, yet money flowing into Ethereum looks selective rather than broad. It seems that positioning is rather conservative; traders prefer waiting for more accurate signals regarding ETH prices instead of attempting to predict a breakout. In turn, ETH is consolidating around a correction, but there is not enough momentum-driven buying. Analyst Views & Price Movement There were also those who cited optimism based on improvements to on-chain fundamentals. For instance, LVRG Research reported that the increasing number of transactions and staking activities encouraged a positive network. Some traders argue the compression in price action could precede a breakout. Ether traded near a two-month high of $3,400 on Wednesday and was around $3,300 in early trading on Friday, reflecting the tug of war between renewed demand and persistent caution. Despite the stronger metrics, technical hurdles remain. Reports and recent analysis suggest the market is in a repair phase, not a confirmed uptrend. Overhead supply still constrains sustained advances, and many market participants want to see ETH reclaim key long-term resistance levels, such as the 200-day EMA, before committing large-scale capital. That explains why short-term traders operate inside a defined range while longer-term players hold back. Related Reading: Ethereum Staking Hits Record Levels As Buterin Urges Builders To Deliver Real Apps What This Means For Traders And Investors Network health has improved materially — more users, more transactions, and higher staking — but price action has not yet matched those gains. Based on the data presented, cautious optimism is reasonable. Traders may find chance to trade the range, while investors looking for conviction should wait for cleaner technical confirmation before assuming a sustained rally. Featured image from Blockzeit/EthBurn, chart from TradingView
Standard Chartered has pushed its base-case price target for Ethereum to $7,500 by the end of the year, a big jump from an earlier $4,000 projection. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s New Power Buyers: Companies Bought 3 Times What Miners Produced According to the bank’s digital assets team, growing demand from corporate treasury buyers and spot ETH products has driven the change in outlook. Bank Raises Ethereum Target The bank’s lead analyst expects fee growth on the Ethereum network and stronger institutional adoption to be key drivers for the move higher. The bank also revised its longer-term numbers, lifting its 2028 target to $25,000 and laying out scenarios that push toward $40,000 by 2030. These wider targets reflect models where stablecoins and tokenized assets expand on Ethereum’s chain. Institutional Buying Drives Demand Data cited by market researchers points to heavy accumulation since June, with spot ETF flows and treasury firms together taking close to 4% of Ether’s circulating supply over that period. ETHEREUM SEEN OUTPERFORMING BITCOIN Standard Chartered says Ethereum’s outlook has improved and it is likely to outperform bitcoin. While weak bitcoin performance has weighed on the broader crypto market, rising institutional demand for ethereum and its dominance in stablecoins,… — *Walter Bloomberg (@DeItaone) January 13, 2026 Treasury firms alone reportedly bought about 2.3 million ETH in just over two months, a pace that Standard Chartered says outstrips some previous accumulation phases seen in Bitcoin. Ethereum Vs. Bitcoin Standard Chartered’s note also argues that Ether could outperform Bitcoin, raising the possibility of the ETH/BTC ratio returning toward levels last seen during 2021’s run-up. Based on the bank’s scenarios, weaker Bitcoin momentum combined with stronger real-world use of Ethereum might lift Ether’s price faster than Bitcoin’s in the months ahead. Long-Term Upside Scenarios Some headlines have pointed to even bigger long-range targets produced by the same models, including forecasts of $30,000 by 2029 and $40,000 by 2030 under more bullish assumptions. These outcomes rely on a substantial expansion of stablecoin use, tokenized real-world assets, and continued staking demand that would remove supply from the market. Independent forecasters remain split, and other banks have offered lower year-end projections, offering a reminder that expert views differ. Meanwhile, market watchers caution, though, that relative moves depend heavily on ETF flows and corporate balance-sheet decisions. Related Reading: Bitcoin At $100K Could Spark A Fresh Wave Of Retail FOMO, Analysts Warn Network Fundamentals And Risks According to the bank, Ethereum’s large share of stablecoin activity and its role in decentralized finance make fee income and on-chain demand a meaningful part of valuation models. That said, the bank notes that scale improvements and Layer 1 throughput will matter a lot if big, traditional finance transactions migrate onchain. The research also warns that shifts in macro conditions, outflows from major ETFs, or regulatory setbacks could change the math quickly. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Analysts suggest macroeconomic conditions and stabilizing prices could support crypto markets in the medium term, with bitcoin potentially reaching $120,000 if sentiment improves.
The bank sees ether benefiting from sector-specific tailwinds even as broader crypto momentum remains uneven.
Ethereum’s social buzz has cooled to levels some analysts compare with the period before last year’s powerful rebound, but experts say that doesn’t automatically mean another big surge is imminent. Related Reading: Bitcoin’s Next Peak Might Ignite ADA’s Rally, Says Cardano Creator Sentiment Mirrors Past Lows According to Santiment analyst Brian Quinlivan, social media sentiment around Ethereum has slipped and now sits near the low range seen before the 2025 rally. Quinlivan suggested that the decline in chatter “argues against us falling too much further,” and he pointed out that price has often climbed after strong public doubt. On Aug. 23, Ether hit a fresh all-time high of around $4,900, a move that followed a recovery from a yearly low near $1,470 in April, based on CoinGecko data. That rally pushed the token back above its 2021 high. Since then, Ether has retreated about 36% from the peak and was trading at $3,089 at the time of the reports. Market Shock And Liquidity Events Reports have disclosed that a mass liquidation on Oct. 10 triggered close to $20 billion of losses across the crypto market, and that event is linked to the more recent pullback. The liquidation hit many positions and was followed by a broader risk-off mood. Crypto fear gauges have been low. One index posted a Fear score of 29 on Sunday, while the Altcoin Season Index shows a Bitcoin Season score of 34 out of 100 — a reading that points to money flowing into Bitcoin rather than into altcoins over the past 90 days. That mix of metrics is being watched closely by traders who size positions on sentiment shifts. Network Activity And Staking Interest Quinlivan also highlighted on-chain signals he finds positive. According to his view, activity on Ethereum’s network has been rising, and staking has drawn more attention from users. Increasing bandwidth is safer than reducing latency With PeerDAS and ZKPs, we know how to scale, and potentially we can scale thousands of times compared to the status quo. The numbers become far more favorable than before (eg. see analysis here, pre and post-sharding… — vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) January 8, 2026 Meanwhile, Vitalik Buterin has joined the public conversation about technical upgrades. Buterin said in an extended X post that PeerDAS, which arrived with the Fusaka upgrade, along with zero-knowledge proofs and sharding, will push Ethereum toward much higher throughput. He added that layer-2 networks like Base, Polygon, and Optimism will still be needed because many use cases demand speeds that are even quicker than mainnet. Related Reading: Crypto Market Watches As Clarity Act Enters Senate Debate Next Week: US Senator Institutional Views And Market Positioning Based on reports, Coinbase Asset Management president Anthony Bassili said in November 2025 that investors tend to view Bitcoin first and Ethereum second when building a core portfolio. That stance reflects how many large investors now treat Ether as the default number-two market cap asset rather than as a fringe bet. With that status, downside expectations can be smaller than for riskier tokens. Still, sentiment can remain low for long stretches, and being ranked highly does not remove volatility. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
Flow and positioning data suggest the recent crypto market correction may be running out of steam, with early signs of stabilization across ETFs and derivatives.
Following a remarkable performance in the first trading days of the year, CNBC anchors have named XRP the breakout trade of 2026, arguing that it has been the silent outperformer during the recent crypto market volatility. Related Reading: Bitcoin At A Crossroads: $93,500 Reclaim Holds The Key For Next Move XRP Becomes The Hottest Trade Of The Year CNBC’s Brian Sullivan highlighted XRP’s strong start to the year, calling the cryptocurrency the “new cryptocurrency darling” of 2026 and placing it ahead of the market’s leading assets. During the Power Lunch segment, the network’s anchor affirmed that “the hottest crypto trade of the year is not Bitcoin, it is not Ether, it is XRP,” arguing that there’s “big money behind this trade.” In his initial remarks, he pointed out the altcoin’s remarkable seven-day rally toward the recent highs. XRP has seen a notable performance since the start of the year, climbing over 30% from its yearly opening to its two-month high of $2.41 on Tuesday morning. Amid this recent performance, the altcoin recently flipped BNB again to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, a place it had lost during the December market volatility. Moreover, it has outperformed most of the largest cryptocurrencies in the weekly timeframe, including BTC’s and ETH’s 4.3% and 6.2% respective rallies. CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos weighed in on XRP’s performance on various segments, affirming that “XRP has been the quiet outperformer for months now.” She addressed whether XRP is taking its place as “the next cool thing to know about” or whether it has a different and more relevant use case that sets it apart from the leading cryptocurrencies, emphasizing its role in cross-border payments as one of its key appeals. What’s Driving The Rally? Sigalos cited three main reasons for the strong star-of-the-year performance. First, she stated that “the regulatory overhang has finally cleared as Ripple has fully wrapped up its SEC fight as of August 2nd.” Second, she asserted that people consider the cryptocurrency “a less crowded trade than Bitcoin or Ether,” which “proved out to be true” just in the first trading days of January. For the third reason, she pointed out that “the flows have held up even during the Q4 dip,” arguing that investors continued to add to XRP-based funds, while the largest crypto ETFs’ flows fell with the price. Well, it’s actually been interesting is that during the doldrums of Q4, you actually saw a lot of people piling into those XRP ETFs, which is the exact opposite of what happens with the spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, where people really move in tandem with the price of the coin. But it was the fact that it is a way to have a higher percentage jump. Related Reading: Ethereum’s Q1 Outlook: Analyst Shares Historical Setup As Price Nears Key Resistance Notably, XRP funds had a remarkable performance since their launch in Q4 2025. The investment products, which first debuted in November, have recorded cumulative net inflows of $1.25 billion, according to data from SoSoValue. The ETF category has not recorded a single day of negative net flows in nearly two months, with consistent inflows since going live. During the first three trading days of the year, XRP funds have seen a total inflow of $78.81 million. As of this writing, XRP is trading at $2.19, a 20% increase in the weekly timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
The Wall Street giant is widening its crypto push, following bitcoin and solana ETF filings with a potential ether trust.
According to Beaconcha.in data and market reports, the Ethereum validator exit queue has shrunk to just 32 ETH, with a wait time of about one minute. That is a steep drop from its mid-September peak of 2.67 million ETH — a fall of almost a hundred percent. Markets often react when locked assets are freed up for sale. Right now, that specific source of immediate selling seems to have faded. Related Reading: Crypto Users Lose Far Less To Phishing As Losses Drop 83% – Details Validator Exit Queue Near Empty The exit mechanism limits how fast validators can stop validating and pull out their full stake. With the queue near zero, there is no backlog waiting to cash out. That reduces one form of nervous selling. Validators still earn rewards while queued and can face penalties if they act badly, but the bottleneck that once forced slow exits is gone. Reports show the withdrawal process for partial payouts remains separate, and those smaller payouts continue without affecting the full-exit flow. Entry Queue Hits Fresh Highs Based on reports, the entry queue has climbed to about 1.3 million ETH, its largest level since mid-November. Large operators are sending chunks of ETH into staking. BitMine began staking on Dec. 26 and added 82,560 ETH to the queue on Jan. 3. The firm now lists 659,219 ETH staked, worth roughly $2.1 billion at current prices. BitMine’s wider holdings stand at just over 4.1 million ETH, representing about 3.4% of the total supply and valued near $13 billion. Those moves add real, measurable demand for staked Ether and help explain why fewer validators appear eager to leave. Exchange Balances And Liquidity Exchange reserves for ETH sit at multi-year lows. That matters because when fewer coins are parked on trading platforms, automatic or panic selling becomes harder to pull off. Traders and analysts point to this as a reason selling pressure is easing. Some industry figures have been quoted saying the exit queue is “basically empty,” and that selling pressure is drying up as staking outpaces withdrawals. Still, the market can move by other means — derivatives, lending desks, and off-exchange trades can shift exposure without touching the staking queues. BULLISH: $ETH surpasses Netflix to reclaim its position as the 36th-largest asset by market cap. pic.twitter.com/NetdCcdtSa — CoinGecko (@coingecko) January 6, 2026 Market Cap Milestone And What It Means Meanwhile, in another development, market watchers also noted that Ethereum has moved past Netflix to be the 36th-largest asset by market cap. That headline grabs attention. It says something about investor focus on blockchain assets right now. Related Reading: Bitcoin Wealth Isn’t About Hype—It’s About Time And Stacking, Expert Says But crossing a market-cap threshold is not the same as a direct reason to buy. Valuation rankings change often, and they can be driven by price moves that are themselves shaped by flows, news, or macro shifts rather than a change in the underlying business. Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
New-year allocations support bitcoin prices as leverage cools and volatility expectations rise.
Bitcoin and ether are off to a strong start this year, and Bitwise says the path to new highs hinges on market stability, U.S. legislation and calm equities.
Led by Chairman Tom Lee, the company now holds 4.14 million ether (ETH), or 3.4% of the total supply.
A large crypto wallet that recently took a sharp loss on Ethereum has restructured its holdings, moving away from volatile tokens and increasing exposure to stablecoins and tokenized gold, according to on-chain tracking data. Related Reading: A Maduro Bet, A Market Alarm: US Lawmaker Targets Trading Abuses The address drew attention after an aggressive Ethereum purchase late last year went wrong. Between November 3 and November 7, 2025, the wallet spent about $110 million to acquire 31,005 ETH at an average price of $3,581. As prices slid, the position was unwound. Nearly the entire holding was sold for roughly $92.19 million, locking in a loss close to $18 million within two weeks. At current prices near $3,020, that same Ethereum stack would now be valued at around $93.6 million. Shift Away From Ether After Costly Exit Based on reports from blockchain monitoring platforms, the sell-off marked a clear change in behavior. The wallet, once heavily tied to Ethereum, no longer holds a large directional bet on the asset. Instead, balances have been spread across cash-like tokens and commodities. The move reflects caution rather than an attempt to quickly recover losses. An unknown whale, who lost $18.8M on $ETH in just 2 weeks, has abandoned $ETH and rotated into #gold. The whale has spent $14.58M to buy 3,299 $XAUT at $4,421 over the past 7 hours.https://t.co/hit6agWmHd pic.twitter.com/X7k94zV0iQ — Lookonchain (@lookonchain) January 2, 2026 Gold Buying Shows Preference For Lower Volatility According to on-chain records, the address began building a position in Tether’s tokenized gold product, XAUT. Starting on Friday, the wallet spent $14.58 million in USDT to buy 3,299 XAUT across several transactions. The average purchase price came in near $4,421 per token. This was not the first gold buy. A smaller XAUT acquisition was made on December 13, roughly three weeks earlier. As of the latest data, the wallet holds 3,386 XAUT tokens worth about $14.92 million. The broader portfolio now totals close to $91 million. About $58 million sits in USDT, another $18 million is held in USDC, while the remainder is split between XAUT and a reduced Ethereum balance. The composition points to capital protection rather than high-risk positioning. Metals Outperform Crypto In 2025 Returns from last year help explain the change. Reports have disclosed that Bitcoin fell by 6% in 2025, while Ethereum dropped 11%. Over the same period, gold surged over 60%, and silver rose an even steeper 147%. Related Reading: Bitcoin Dominance Grows As Altcoins Post Another Losing Year: Analyst Major stock indexes such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq 100 also posted stronger performance than much of the crypto market. With those results in view, some investors appear more comfortable holding assets linked to metals or cash. Meanwhile, analysts at asset manager VanEck have pointed to 2026 as a possible recovery year for the crypto market. Their view contrasts with the current behavior of large wallets moving into stablecoins and gold-linked tokens. The divide shows how uncertain sentiment remains after a year when metals and traditional assets delivered stronger gains than major cryptocurrencies. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
The chairman of the former bitcoin miner-turned-ether treasury firm reiterated his view that Ethereum is the future of finance.
According to Farside Investors data, US investors put close to $32 billion into US crypto exchange-traded funds in 2025 even as markets lost steam late in the year. Related Reading: Crypto Headed For A $10 Trillion Future? Hoskinson Says RWA Is The Key Spot Bitcoin ETFs drew the biggest share, with $21.4 billion in net inflows. That is smaller than the $35 billion that poured into Bitcoin ETFs in 2024. Blackrock Dominates Flows BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF, IBIT, accounted for most of the activity. Reports show IBIT took in about $24.7 billion. That makes its inflows roughly five times larger than the nearest rival, Fidelity’s FBTC. Market watchers noted IBIT ranked near the top among all ETF flows, placing behind only a few broad index funds and a big treasury bond fund. If IBIT’s number is removed, the wider spot Bitcoin ETF group actually finished the year with about $3 billion in combined outflows. Grayscale’s Bitcoin product lost nearly $4 billion on the year. Bitcoin’s price was lower than at the start of 2025; it began the year around $93,500. Ethereum Interest Strong But Cooling Based on reports, interest in Ethereum ETFs was real, but the momentum looks uneven. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust, ETHA, sits at nearly $12.6 billion in inflows. Fidelity’s FETH follows at $2.6 billion, while Grayscale’s Ethereum Mini Trust ETF holds about $1.5 billion. Still, public on-chain data showed little renewed demand for spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs in the last month of the year, suggesting flows may slow into 2026. Ether ETFs benefited from being new and giving investors a regulated way to own ETH, but recent days have seen quieter buying. Spot Ether ETFs, which only became widely tradable after their July 2024 launch, gathered $9.6 billion in their first full year. Spot Solana ETFs, launched in late October, added $765 million through year end. Altcoin ETFs Show Curiosity, Not Frenzy Litecoin and XRP ETFs also began trading in the latter half of the year, giving investors more choices for regulated altcoin exposure. The sums are small compared with Bitcoin and Ether. Solana’s $765 million is an example of early interest that has not yet turned into a large, steady stream of assets. These products are being tested by the market. Related Reading: Gold And Stocks Ran Ahead, But Bitcoin May Close The Gap In 2026 Global Flows Tell A Different Story Industry trackers reported that crypto ETFs listed worldwide experienced $2.95 billion in net outflows in November, and there was about $179 billion invested in crypto ETFs globally at the end of that month. Regulators and exchanges moved faster this year under new SEC leadership that was more open to approvals, which in turn helped institutional adoption in the US. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
A massive crypto position opened by a high-net-worth holder has traders debating whether a short, sharp bounce is coming — or if the market is setting up for more pain. According to on-chain trackers, an $11 billion Bitcoin whale recently sold assets and placed nearly three quarters of a billion dollars on bets for higher prices in Bitcoin, Ether and Solana. Whale Opens Massive Longs Based on reports by Lookonchain, the wallet sold about $330 million worth of Ether before opening three leveraged long positions totaling $748 million. The single biggest position is a $598 million long on Ether opened at $3,147 with a liquidation trigger under $2,143. Related Reading: Crypto Policy In The Hot Seat As US Lawmaker Calls SEC Hearing The same reports list entry prices near BTC $87,883 and SOL $124.43 for the other parts of the bet. At the time of the trades, Ether was trading around $2,975. The whale is carrying close to $50 million in unrealized losses on those leveraged bets, according to the on-chain data. BREAKING! The #BitcoinOG(1011short) with a massive $749M long position in $BTC, $ETH, and $SOL, just deposited 112,894 $ETH($332M) into #Binance again.https://t.co/rM9dXV3Ln4https://t.co/Fsi6okD47f pic.twitter.com/qVlZ4c6Htx — Lookonchain (@lookonchain) December 30, 2025 Smart Money Still Cautious Reports have disclosed that other whale addresses also piled into spot Ether around the same window. One thread of transactions shows about $5B of Bitcoin moved into Ether holdings since August, with an earlier swap that saw $2.59B of BTC exchanged for $2.2 billion in spot ETH and a $577M perpetual long. In one burst of activity, nine large addresses added a combined $456 million in ETH within a day. Nansen data shows 19 wallets collecting a total of 7.43 million spot ETH in recent weeks. Nansen’s data tells a very different story. Based on figures from the analytics firm, high-performing traders reduced their bullish Ether positions by $6.5 million in a single day and are now holding net short positions of $121 million on ETH. The same group is also betting lower on Bitcoin, with $192 million in short exposure, and on Solana, totaling $74 million. While large holders buying on the spot market can push prices higher in the short run, experienced traders appear to be bracing for further weakness rather than a sustained move up. Year-End Rally Failed As Liquidity Thinned Bitcoin and Ether ended December without the expected year-end rally, highlighting the fragility of crypto markets when liquidity is low and risk appetite declines. Repeated attempts by Bitcoin to reclaim key levels were unsuccessful, and the quarter closed with negative performance while precious metals such as gold posted gains. Related Reading: Crypto Heat Fizzling Out? US Search Interest Plunges As Retail Shy Away The market is now watching whether the alpha crypto can hold support into the new year; the failed rally may mean a deeper reset is needed before a sustained recovery. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView