Ether (ETH) experienced a significant rally of 18.7% between September 17 and September 23, surpassing Bitcoin (BTC) in terms of weekly gains. This surge in ETH’s price was driven by factors such as an increase in open interest, funding rates, and network growth, all of which indicate strong demand for ETH.
According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, Ether’s price has risen by 4% in the past 24 hours, reaching $2,650. In comparison, Bitcoin is currently trading at $63,678, reflecting a 1.8% increase in the last 24 hours. During the same period, the total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency market has risen by 2% to reach $2.3 trillion.
Ether has outperformed Bitcoin in the past seven days, with a price increase of 17.5% compared to Bitcoin’s 9.8% rise. The ETH/BTC ratio has also seen a rise of approximately 7.5% in the past week, reaching a three-week high of 0.0424 on September 23. This reversal in the ratio indicates a growing demand for Ether as an alternative to Bitcoin.
Flows into US-based spot Ethereum ETFs turned positive last week, with minor inflows of $5.2 million and $2.9 million on September 19 and September 20 respectively, according to data from Farside investors. However, Ethereum investment products still lag behind Bitcoin, with Ether experiencing outflows for the fifth consecutive week, totaling $29 million between September 16 and September 20, as reported by CoinShares.
The decreasing dominance of Bitcoin in the market is another sign of Ether’s outperformance. Bitcoin’s dominance has dropped from a high of 58.7% on September 19 to 57.4% on September 23, indicating a weakening of the top cryptocurrency compared to altcoins like Ether.
With Bitcoin’s dominance steadily declining, market participants anticipate further increases in ETH’s value against its BTC pair. This suggests that investors have a more bullish outlook on Ether and may allocate more funds to Ethereum investment products.
The positive funding rate for Ether, currently standing at $0.0072%, reflects an increased demand for leveraged long positions, indicating a bullish sentiment.
Analyzing Ethereum’s network activity and scaling solutions is crucial in understanding the sustainability of ETH’s support at $2,600. The increasing use of decentralized applications (DApps) on the Ethereum blockchain is indicative of higher demand for ETH. In the past 24 hours, the top Ethereum DApps have seen a 1.42% decrease in the number of unique active wallets, but a 21.92% increase in volume, according to DappRadar data. Additionally, DApp transactions on the Ethereum network have increased by 6.5% in the same period, driven by platforms such as Uniswap, Balancer, ParaSwap, and Aave.
Furthermore, data from DefiLlama shows a rise in the total value locked (TVL) on Ethereum, increasing from $44.1 billion to $49.65 billion between September 18 and September 23. This indicates a growing user interaction with the blockchain, leading to higher demand for Ether.
Overall, sustained network growth, increased Ether transactions, and DApp usage are crucial for maintaining ETH’s value above $2,600. It is important to note that this article does not provide investment advice or recommendations, and readers should conduct their own research before making any investment decisions.