Ethereum’s upward momentum has stalled this week after running into resistance near the critical price level of $2,722, as substantial selling pressure from large holders—known as whales—has dampened bullish sentiments. Data indicates that these major investors have offloaded around 200,000 ETH over the past week, worth approximately $530 million. This has reduced their holdings from 103.74 million coins on May 24 to 103.52 million coins currently.
Additionally, Ethereum’s presence across social media platforms has sharply declined. Its social volume, a measure of online discussion and interest, has dropped significantly to 476, well below this month’s earlier peak at 3,060. Typically, rising cryptocurrency prices align with heightened community engagement and increased active discussions among traders. Therefore, the falling social volume indicates diminished enthusiasm surrounding Ethereum.
The Ethereum network is also confronting increased competition from its Layer-2 solutions. Recent data shows Ethereum had 415,000 active addresses on Tuesday, significantly fewer than competitors such as Base, which logged approximately 1.93 million active addresses, and Celo, registering roughly 486,000.
Revenue streams from Layer-2 networks renting Ethereum’s capacity have also declined materially this month. Base paid Ethereum around $112,000 over the past 30 days, down 57% from the prior month. Payments from Arbitrum One and Optimism decreased as well, amounting to $39,000 and $13,000 respectively, marking substantial double-digit declines for both.
Despite these headwinds, Ethereum ETFs have begun to attract renewed capital from U.S. institutional investors. ETFs focusing on Ethereum have reported positive inflows for three consecutive weeks, accumulating $38 million so far this week. These additions bring total ETF investments to $2.8 billion, raising total assets under management to approximately $9.6 billion.
From a technical viewpoint, Ethereum’s price on the daily chart has encountered firm resistance at roughly $2,722, closely aligning with the significant 50% Fibonacci retracement level. Despite repeated attempts, ETH has failed to overcome this key level, stagnating and forming what appears to be a bullish “flag-like” consolidation pattern following a strong upward movement. Further, a bullish technical signal known as the golden cross, characterized by the 50-day moving average crossing above the 200-day moving average, is approaching—potentially indicating that positive momentum could return.
If Ethereum successfully breaks out above the $2,722 resistance point, market analysts anticipate a rally to the next psychological target near $3,000, further opening the path toward a possible run-up to $4,000. Conversely, if selling pressure intensifies and the ETH price falls below the $2,333 support level, the bullish scenario would likely be negated.
