Crypto market interest is slowly moving from Bitcoin to Ether, but most investors are unlikely to notice this due to fear of past market downturns, a crypto analyst says.
“The markets aren’t entirely Bitcoin focused; as a matter of fact, it is shifting toward Ethereum,” said MN Trading Capital founder Michaël van de Poppe in a market update on Wednesday.
Van de Poppe cited recent documents from popular Bitcoin (BTC) onchain analyst Willy Woo, who argued that the crypto market is entering a state of “Ethereum.”
Crypto investors are stuck in a “markets are bad” mindset
“I like the statement,” van de Poppe said, agreeing with it. However, he said the first stages of this shift are probably going unnoticed as “everybody is still stuck in the fact that the markets are bad.”
“The first signs of that is that we are currently seeing that the returns of Ethereum are better.”
“The reason for the fact we are seeing an Ethereum shift, or an Ethereum market is that the macroeconomic tables are shifting as the dollar is becoming weaker and the business cycle starts to go up,” he said.
At the time of publication, Ether (ETH) is up 71% since reaching its April year-to-date low of $1,472, according to CoinMarketCap data.
However, it is still down 48% from its November 2021 all-time high of $4,878. Van de Poppe said:
“In recent months, we are finally getting into better shape, but everybody is still stuck in the bear market PTSD.”
The ETH/BTC ratio is up 0.33% over the past 30 days but still down 32.32% over the past six months, at 0.024, according to TradingView data. Crypto analyst “Crypto Fella” told their 82,100 X followers this is the “most important chart to look at.”
“We need to see some strength before we can see the big reversal,” Crypto Fella said.
Meanwhile, crypto analyst Ted said Ether is following Bitcoin’s pattern during the 2017-2021 cycle.
“The real parabolic move will start once ETH breaks $4,000,” Ted said.
Spot Ether ETFs showing promising momentum
However, the recent performance of the Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) has been more promising.
US-based spot Ether ETFs recently recorded its longest-ever inflow streak at 19 consecutive days, with $1.37 billion in inflows, according to Farside data, representing approximately 35% of total inflows since their July 2024 launch.
Yet, other indicators suggest it is still a very Bitcoin-dominated market. CoinMarketCap’s Altcoin Season Index — which measures whether altcoins are outperforming Bitcoin based on 90-day performance — currently signals it’s still firmly “Bitcoin Season,” with a 23 out of 100 score.
There were recent signs of a potential flip on May 10, when the index hit 43 following Ether’s 42% rebound from $1,811 on May 7 to $2,582 on May 10.
Altcoin season depends on Ether doing better and showing strength
Van de Poppe said that Ether needs to deliver stronger and more sustained performance for the long-awaited altcoin season to return.
“If we want to have an altseason that we all are craving for, well, we want to get out of our positions at breakeven or perhaps even make money, then we need Ethereum to do better, then we need Ethereum to show strength,” van de Poppe said.
“The markets are becoming way more complex,” he added.
Related: Staked Ethereum hits 35M ETH high as liquid supply declines
Cointelegraph reported on Friday that Ether futures premium briefly turned bearish as ETH price plunged 15% to $2,440, wiping out $277 million in leveraged long positions over two days.
However, the futures premium had reclaimed the neutral 5% threshold by Sunday, suggesting that traders are regaining confidence in the $2,400 support level.
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This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
