Ethereum saw the steepest drop of the two, crashing more than 9% to under $2,500, falling below a key support level. Market Impact The crypto winter has led to confusion about which direction the short-term market will take. At the same time, Ethereum whales continue to fall. The price decline comes at a time of rising geopolitical tensions after the recent alleged Israeli preemptive strike on Iran, and expected Iranian retaliation.
The amount of Ethereum whales—the wallets that hold between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH—has consistently dropped. The number currently sits at 5,378. That’s a drop from 5,427 only ten days earlier and a drop of 5,400 three days ago.
Whale suppression hit a 7-day low yesterday. This was a bullish trend but could mean that institutional confidence in Ethereum’s near-term price action is evaporating. Usually, these types of declines indicate profit taking, a flight to risk aversion, or just a lack of confidence of the smart money.
Ethereum’s price retraced their gains, dropping from a recent peak of $2,860. The fall under $2,500 is the lowest plunge yet for the young crypto. This drop is most notable given that its futures open interest had recently reached an all-time high.
From the 2023 high cryptocurrency market, the broader crypto market was affected, leading to more than $1 billion in liquidations, overwhelmingly mostly long liquidations. Namely, over $947 million in long positions were liquidated throughout the entire crypto landscape. Ethereum’s decline is just one part of larger market volatility. That volatility is heavily influenced by a volatile cocktail of internal drama and external geopolitical occurrences such as the continuing war in Ukraine.
