Ether (Eth) the price dropped below $ 2,600 on February 24 and since the struggle to maintain a significant recovery. The latest correction towards the $ 2,000 level has been able to trigger over $ 918 million in leveraged long (bull) fluids in ETH futures for 15 days, according to coinglass data.
Entrepreneurs are now questioning what needs to happen to break the ETH above $ 2,500.
Ether/USD (left) compared to total altcoin market cap (right). Source: TradingView / Cointelegraph
Ether underperformed the Altcoin market of 10% during this time, as shown in the chart above.
More about, this denial followed a Memecoin Frenzy that strengthened Ethereum’s main competitor, Solana (Sol). This indicates that additional factors prevent ETH prices, and four major issues need to be addressed before Ether gets a bull market.
Ethereum upgrades and increased competition
For some, the Upcoming PECTRA upgrade In the Ethereum network it is undeniable what it takes to drive a significant rotation, if it reduces base-layer transaction fees or significantly improves usability.
Although changes improve the user experience, analysts argue that Ethereum still has no interoperability in various layer-2 solutions, both in terms of liquidity and user access.
Recent reports of empty blocks to Ethereum Testnet has been added to the risk of understanding at a time when investors are already in doubt. Regardless of whether this issue is not related to the upcoming upgrade or easily organized, some traders are concerned that any potential delay may be negatively seen in the market.
In essence, fear remains dominant emotion, and to change it, many pressing issues must be resolved.
Critics argue that part of investment investment failures derived from increasing indirect competitors, such as the modular layer-1 berachain, which focuses on integrating liquidity and management for decentralized finance applications (DEFI).
7-day protocol fees ranking, USD. Source: Defillma
Berachain successfully obtained more than $ 3 billion in deposits, as measured by the total amount locked (TVL) in Defillma.
Similarly, hyperliquid, a Perpetual futures application The dost of its own blockchain, exceeds $ 2.8 billion in open interest, exceeding competitors in the Ethereum network. In many ways, the competition grows beyond the traditional model.
For the price of ETH to recover the bullish momentum, merchants require the assurance that the Ethereum network offers practical and clear advantages for its projects and users. Ultimately, Ethereum’s focus on decentralization and increasing improvements – be reasonable or not – can be stemming demand compared to its competition.
Poor Inchain and Institutional Demand activity
Lack of demand from institutional investors is apparent in the flow of funds exchanged (ETF), that is negative Of the nine of the last 10 days of trading, resulting in $ 406 million in net withdrawal.
Some analysts have suggested that demand may progress following the final approval of native staking at the Ethereum ETF, but this theory is less specific, given that the ETH supply increases to 0.7% year -old.
Lower demand for blockchain processing has reduced the burn-fee mechanism, causing the ether to become inflationary. As a result, the adjective native staking reward is below 2.5%, while deposits in Stablecoins produce up to 4.5% in most defi projects.
Ultimately, the final integration of staking in the ETFs spot is unlikely to be a game changing for institutional demand.
Related: Defi TVL has dropped $ 45b, deleting the gains since Trump’s election
Finally, traders are concerned that the US Securities and Exchange Commission may approve a place Solana etf In 2025, the creation of direct competition for investors currently with access to Ether and Bitcoin (Btc) ETF products.
Therefore, in order to reach the price of ETH $ 2,500 and beyond, investors require more clear evidence that Ethereum offers sustainable benefits beyond the first-mover advantage.
In summary, the ether’s future depends on the upgrades of the Ethero’s network, increased network use, a subsequent supply decline, and decreased friction for layer-2 interoperability, ensuring that the entire ecosystem benefits from its growth.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be done as legal or investment advice. The views, attitudes, and opinions expressed here are unique and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of the cointelegraph.
